This paper, reporting on part of a wider study, explores the views held by
68 families, who have a child with a disability, of their perceptions of li
festyle control or empowerment. In particular, the paper seeks to examine w
hether these families perceive their interactions with service providers to
be consistent with family-empowerment principles. Individual open-ended in
terviews were conducted with these family members, yielding information on
their perceptions of their control over their family lives, and on their vi
ews as to how their interactions with service providers might be conducted
in such a way as to recognize and enhance such control. The implications fo
r professionals working with families in a manner that recognizes family me
mbers as truly equal partners and that promotes and enhances genuine family
empowerment are discussed.