Exploring the relationship of resources on families that have a child with a disability: A latent transition analysis

Abstract

Families that have a child with a disability are at tremendous risk for increased stress and negative outcomes compared to families that have a typically developing child. These effects can compound during times of transition. The current study analyzed the relationship of internal and external resources on the family adaptation process as the family had a child with a disability enter preschool. Using the FAAR model to conceptualize the process of adjustment and adaptation, 242 families were studied measuring their empowerment and support before and after the transition into preschool. A latent class analysis was used to identify different groups of families according to their scores on the latent variable while a latent transition analysis was utilized to calculate the probability of families changing classes during the transition. Covariates were also introduced to see the effects on transition probabilities. Lastly, child academic outcomes were gathered and compared between different family transition patterns. The study yielded 4 distinct classes with multiple unique transition patterns. The transition patterns showed relative stability from one time point to the next with change appearing incrementally. Each individual class and the unique transition patterns that emerged are discussed at length along with child outcomes and implications for future study.