Rozwój w roli babci dziecka z niepełnosprawnością intelektualną
Development in the Role of Grandmother of a Child with Intellectual Disabilities

Summary/Abstract: Having a child with intellectual disabilities in the family initiates the process of adaptation of the other family members to the new difficult life situation. Research shows that grandparents of children with disabilities have a variety of experiences as well. The subject of this study were the personal meanings given to the role of grandmother of a child with intellectual disabilities. The subjects were nine grandmothers aged 57–80 years (M = 65.6, MD = 63); the grandchildren had mild or moderate intellectual disabilities. Semi-structured interviews exploring the experiences of being a grandmother of a child with intellectual disabilities were conducted. The statements obtained were analysed using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (Pietkiewicz, Smith, 2012) which involves detecting personal meanings given to experiences. Fear and compassion related to disability were revealed in the statements, which included both the child and other family members. At the same time, being actively involved in the upbringing of a grandchild with NI and in supporting parents and siblings had an important place in the grandmothers’ systems of meaning. Supporting the whole family was an important life commitment for the women interviewed, and the role of grandmother of a child with NI provided an opportunity to change one’s own attitudes and nurture values. The results obtained were interpreted in the context of the development of generativity, which can be an important area of development not only in middle but also in late adulthood, moreover, it can be driven by non-normative and potentially stressful situations.

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