Expectations and Aspirations of Kuwaiti Fathers and Mothers Towards Transition Outcomes of Their Child with a Disability in Kuwait

There are many challenges that face individuals with disabilities and their families during the transition period from childhood to adulthood. As young adolescents exit high school many of their future transition options are influenced by their family context, especially the child's parents. This study investigates parents' expectations and aspirations for their children with disabilities in terms of transition outcomes in order to understand the needs of those parents in preparing their children as they exit school, and transition to adulthood in Kuwait, a country that has yet to address transition in its laws and policies on disabilities. The proposed study investigated parental expectations and aspirations in their child's preparation for transition. It also examined the role of some demographic variables found to be important in past research, such as parent's gender, age, education level, monthly income, child's gender, child's age, and degree of child's disability. These variables were examined in relation to Kuwaiti fathers' and mothers' transition expectations and aspirations in the following areas: future orientation, community resources, financial independence, employment, postsecondary education, residential and daily living, and social relationships. An overall finding of this study is that parents, who are younger in age, have lower income and education levels, and have a younger child with a less severe disability tended to have higher expectations and aspirations for their children with disabilities. Despite the older age of the fathers and their higher education and income levels compared to the mothers, both fathers and mothers had generally similar expectations and aspirations towards transition outcomes for their children with disabilities. However, mothers had higher aspirations for their child's social relationships than did the fathers, especially for their daughters. The best predictors for fathers' and mothers' expectations and aspirations for their children's transition outcomes included, fathers' education level, mothers' education level, mothers' income, child's age, and degree of child's disability. Parents' high expectations and aspirations for employment, postsecondary education, and social relationships were a promising theme as their children transitioned to adulthood. The results of this study have provided a framework for further research in the area of transition in Kuwait. Although transition is a vital area and concept that should influence national laws and policies, it still remains relatively new to Kuwait. This research study will potentially lead to an increased understanding of parents' needs for support services to guide them and their children to a smoother transition to adulthood.