SERVICE NEEDS OF CARERS FOR PEOPLE WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES - PROFILES OF HIGH-NEED AND LOW-NEED GROUPS

A cluster analysis of responses of 78 carers of people with learning d isabilities to service needs scales identified high- and low-need grou ps, each with distinct profiles. In comparison with the low-need group , the high-need group reported greater needs for familial social suppo rt; help explaining their child's handicap to others; assistance with leisure activities for their handicapped member; extrafamilial social support; financial assistance; information on services for families wi th a handicapped member; information on child development and manageme nt; and respite care and counselling, Those in the high-need group per ceived the handicapped person for whom they cared to have more behavio ural problems and safety skills deficits. The carers in the high-need group also had lower levels of perceived social Support and higher lev els of family stress. Although high- and low-need groups displayed the se disparate psychosocial profiles, they were demographically similar and did not differ in terms of the level of disability of the handicap ped people for whom the cared.