Time demands and experienced stress in Greek mothers of children with Down's syndrome.
Mothers of children with Down syndrome face sharp time shortages and high stress, especially around schooling and play, so your plans should lighten their daily load.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Fisch (1998) asked Greek mothers about time and stress. They compared moms of kids with Down syndrome to moms of kids without disabilities.
Mothers filled out surveys. They listed how many hours they spent on chores, play, school help, and medical care.
What they found
Mothers of children with Down syndrome said they had far less free time. They also rated their stress as much higher.
The biggest crunch came from extra educational and play tasks. These moms felt they had to work twice as hard to give their kids the same chances.
How this fits with other research
Cregenzán-Royo et al. (2018) looked at the same group twenty years later. They found that when moms show lots of criticism or emotional heat, called high Expressed Emotion, their kids act out more. This adds a new layer: stress is not just about hours, but also about how feelings are voiced.
Demello et al. (1992) flipped the lens to fathers in the United States. Those dads of kids with Down syndrome also reported more chores and money worries, yet they stayed upbeat. Together, the papers show mothers feel the time pinch more sharply than fathers.
van Timmeren et al. (2016) link the stress to school. Teachers said kids with Down syndrome who were aggressive or inattentive completed fewer tasks. This hints that extra educational hours moms report may stem from real classroom struggles, not just perception.
Why it matters
If you serve families of kids with Down syndrome, plan for heavy time demands on mothers. Offer flexible meeting times, respite vouchers, or sibling care so moms can breathe. Track parent stress at every re-assessment; high stress predicts both maternal health issues and child behavior problems. Share short video models or homework packs that cut teaching time at home. When you see attention or compliance issues at school, team up with teachers to create supports that lighten the load on mom.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The purpose of the present study was to asses the time demands placed on mothers of children with Down's syndrome, and the possible relationship between those demands and the stress which the mothers experience. The study sample consisted of 41 mothers of children with Down's syndrome living in Northern Greece and a comparison group of 41 mothers of non-disabled children. Three instruments were used for the data collection: (1) a questionnaire for biographic information; (2) a self-report form assessing the time demands placed on the mothers; and (3) an adaptation of the Clark Questionnaire on Resources and Stress (QRS) for the evaluation of the stress experienced. The results of the present study revealed increased time demands on the mothers of children with Down's syndrome in comparison to the mothers of non-disabled children in terms of recreational/educational activities and total time demands. Furthermore, the mothers of children with Down's syndrome perceived the time they spend with their children less positively than the mothers of the comparison group. In regard to the stress experienced, it appeared that mothers of children with Down's syndrome differ significantly from mothers of non-disabled children, not only on the level of the stress which they experience, but on the activities related to this stress as well.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 1998 · doi:10.1046/j.1365-2788.1998.00113.x