Self-Directed Learning of Child-Care Skills by Parents With Intellectual Disabilities

Children of parents with intellectual disabilities (ID) are at risk for neglectful care due to parenting skill deficiencies. This article describes the development, use, and evaluation of self-directed learning (via self-instructional audiovisual child-care materials) to teach basic child-care, health, and safety skills to parents with ID. We developed the materials based on input from pediatric health care professionals and research on how to present visual materials to persons with low literacy skills. The parents quickly learned how to use the pictorial manuals and accompanying audiocassette. Controlled field studies with 33 parents with ID (30 mothers, 3 fathers) found that 96% of the self-trained skills rapidly reached the same level seen in competent parents and maintained as long as 3.5 years. Consumer satisfaction ratings were uniformly high. Percentage correct performance was significantly related to the parents' reading abilities and initial acceptance of the materials. Overall, the results of these studies indicate that many parents with ID may improve their parenting skills with low cost, low tech, self-directed learning. Future research should evaluate the effects of mass dissemination of the self-instructional materials on the incidence of child neglect related to parental incompetence.