Staying connected during COVID-19: Family engagement with adults with developmental disabilities in supported accommodation.
Unstructured video calls leave families feeling shut out; add coaching and props to make remote contact count.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Araten-Bergman et al. (2021) asked families of adults with developmental disabilities about staying in touch during COVID-19. All adults lived in supported homes, not with family. The team sent an online survey to relatives in the UK. They wanted to know if video calls replaced in-person visits.
What they found
Families used Zoom, FaceTime, and WhatsApp, but the calls felt flat. Relatives said they could not hug, share a meal, or help with small tasks. Social support dropped, and many felt like outsiders in their loved one's life. Remote tech helped a little, yet it did not fill the gap left by face-to-face contact.
How this fits with other research
Beck et al. (2021) showed video coaching can work well. Toddlers in their study gained joint attention after therapists coached parents on Zoom. The difference: calls had a clear goal, step-by-step prompts, and practice items mailed ahead. Tal et al. found the opposite outcome when calls had no plan.
Gur et al. (2023) tracked Israeli adults with IDD before and after COVID-19. Life satisfaction, adaptive skills, and family closeness all fell, matching the UK drop. The two studies together tell the same story: loss of in-person family time hurts adults with developmental disabilities, no matter the country.
Isensee et al. (2022) surveyed families of autistic adolescents at home. They also saw doubled stress and lost therapy. Tal et al. extend this finding to adults in residential care, showing the damage continues after the child years.
Why it matters
If you support adults in group homes, do not assume a weekly Zoom equals family contact. Build a brief agenda with the relative: sing a favorite song, show a new photo, or practice a daily living task together. Mail props ahead so the adult can hold and use items while the family watches. A five-minute coached call beats thirty minutes of silent staring at a screen.
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Email one relative a three-step plan for tomorrow's call: greeting, shared activity, goodbye ritual, plus mail any needed items today.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Enduring family engagement and informal support is crucial to the health and well-being of adults with developmental disabilities (DD) residing in supported accommodation. The COVID-19 pandemic and restrictive measures enforced in residential settings have resulted in changes in daily routine and modified the ways families can interact with and provide support to residents. Yet, the impact of these changes has not been empirically explored. AIM: Explore how family caregivers have interacted with and supported their relatives with DD residing in supported accommodation during the pandemic. METHODS: Changes in frequencies of communication modes and types of informal support were measured through a cross-sectional and anonymous online survey which completed by 108 family caregivers of adults with DD. RESULTS: Most family caregivers adopted remote communication technologies; however, these were not perceived to be effective in filling the gap created by reduced face-to-face contact. While families were able to provide emotional support and advocacy using digital technologies, they were limited in their ability to provide significant social support. CONCLUSIONS: Findings may help key stakeholders develop and implement novel strategies and policies to accommodate the changing circumstances and to ensure continuity of family engagement and informal support in the context of COVID-19.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2021 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2020.103812