The levels of care burden, compassion, and compassionate love of parents with and without children with special needs: Case-control studies

Abstract

Having a child with special needs comes with many challenges. To cope with these difficulties, it is necessary to determine the level of compassion and love of parents with children with special needs and provide support to these parents. This study aimed to determine the levels of care burden, compassion, and compassionate love of parents with and without children with special needs. The study was conducted in a case-control design between December 2022 and April 2023. The sample included 48 parents in the group of parents with children with special needs (experimental or case group) and 55 parents in the group of parents with healthy children (control group). Parents’ inclusion criteria were: agreement to participate in the research, no known health problems and ability to speak Turkish. Data was collected using the Personal Information Form, the Burden Interview (BI), the Compassion Scale (CS), and the Compassionate Love Scale (CLS). The study findings indicate that the participants’ level of education, economic status, and age were associated with having a child with special needs. The educational and economic status of the parents in the case group was significantly lower (p <.05), and their care burden was significantly higher (p <.05). The levels of compassionate love (111.96 ± 16.13) and compassion (80.21 ± 7.67) of the case group were lower than those of the control group, but the difference was not significant. The process of caring for children with special needs is a long and arduous process that involves a larger workforce, high costs, and love and compassion from parents. To reduce the care burden of parents with children with special needs, these parents should be supported. Based on the concept that compassion and levels of compassionate love increase resilience, it is recommended that compassion awareness training be provided to this special group.