Parental influences on creativity of children with developmental disabilities

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate the parental influences in relation with the children’s creativity and how the parental perception as a mediator predicting the children’s creativity. The study examined 127 parents with a child diagnosed with developmental disabilities and 94 parents of typically developing children as well as their children. The parents completed the Parenting Stress Index/Short Form, the Scales for Rating Behavioral Characteristics of Superior Students-Revised version and Parent As a Teacher Inventory. The children’s creativity was assessed by the Test for Creative Thinking – Drawing Production. The study revealed parents of children with developmental disabilities were having higher parenting stress level across different domains. The stress level was related to the childrearing attitude in allowing the children to take control, encouraging children’s creativity development and the self-perceived capability in teaching. Perception of parents in children’s creativity characteristics was mediator in accounting for the children’s creativity level. The predictive effects of parental stress in the interaction with children as well as the self-perceived capability in teaching towards the children’s creativity level were examined in the present study. Qualitative interview was also conducted with 2 parents supporting the results and the data triangulation validity was established. Regarding the predictive effect of parental stress in the interaction with children as well as the self-perceived teaching capability in predicting children’s creativity development, it substantiated the needs of develop intervention program especially for those parents having children with developmental disabilities to cope with their stress and enhance their ability to teach and nurture the children’s creativity.