Abstract
M.A. (Social Work)
Although families and the effects that retarded'children have
on their functioning has been a focus of clinical concern for
some time, it is only recently that research on the family as a
system has come to the fore. Inherent in this work has been the
notion that the relationships and influences between retarded
children and their families are most likely reciprocal and
circular (Crnic, Fredrich & Greenberg, 1983), such that
although families are affected by the presence of retarded
children, the children are also affected by their families'
response and the quality of the home context (Nihira, Meyers
and Mink 1980). The response that parents and families have to
the children is to some degree dependent upon the stresses
endured and perceived by the family members in response to the
presence of the disorder. Families, too, are more than a
collection of independent individuals. The family context is a
system and an organisation that operates on several levels.
These levels include the various combinations of family members
in specific interactions (mother-child, mother-father-child,
mother-father and sibling-sibling), as well as the group
activities in which families engage (e.g. recreational, chores,
community involvement etc. ). The stress frequently associated
with the presence of the retarded child affects the family
system, as well as the parents and siblings as individuals
(Crnic, Fredrich, & Greenberg, 1983).