THE IMPACT OF PARENT GROUPS ON MOTHERS OF INFANTS WITH DISABILITIES

This paper examines the correlates and consequences of participation i n professionally-organized parent groups for 150 mothers receiving ear ly intervention services for their infants and toddlers with disabilit ies. Results revealed that participants in parent groups had higher ed ucational levels than nonparticipants and reported larger increases in the size and helpfulness of their social support networks. Intensity of participation in patient groups, however, was associated with both positive and negative outcomes for maternal functioning and social sup port Implications of these findings for the use of parent groups in ea rly intervention programs are discussed.