Parental Expectations and Child's Self-Concept in Spina Bifida

In this study, I examined parental expectations of a child with spina bifida and the child's self-concept, and I explored the relation between expectations and self-concept. The Predictive Adaptive Ability Questionnaire and the Piers-Harris Self-Concept Scale were used to measure parental expectations and the child's self-concept in 30 able-bodied and 30 spina bifida parent-child dyads. Expectations were significantly different for the two groups; however, self-concept scores were not different, with no significant relation between the two. The results suggest that parents have different expectations for a child with a disability, and those expectations primarily reflect physical limitations.