Social Profile of Mothers Raising Children With Disabilities: A Survey in Rural and Small-Town Russia

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15826/csp.2024.8.2.276

Abstract

Like any other family, families with disabled children have their share of joys and sorrows. However, social attitudes and prejudices towards disabilities often pose more significant challenges than the child’s condition itself. Discrimination against mothers raising disabled children comes to the fore in social interactions, where the child’s disability can unfairly define the mother, subjecting her to stigmatization. The ability of parents, particularly mothers, to mobilize resources is crucial for the family’s well-being, as they often bear the primary responsibility for child care. In Russia, one in three disabled children is raised by only one parent. Social services for families with disabled children are evolving in response to families’ needs, but there is currently no unified system to verify their effectiveness. Our study was conducted in 2024 in Vladimir and Nizhny Novgorod Oblasts and explored socio-psychological distress in families with disabled children. Through semi-structured interviews with 98 women whose children attend social rehabilitation institutions, we gained insights into mothers’ experiences, including their life satisfaction, access to state and social support, as well as daily stigmatization. These findings provide a comprehensive understanding of the challenges faced by women raising disabled children, highlighting areas of social disadvantage and stigma in provincial contexts.

Author Biographies

Elmira K. Naberushkina, Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, Moscow, Russia; State University of Management, Moscow, Russia

Elmira K. Naberushkina, Dr. Sci. (Sociology), Professor, Department of Sociology of the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. She is the author of 110 scientific publications. Since 2009, she has been the head of a research direction devoted to the study of social policy in relation to socially disadvantaged categories of the population. Research interests: disability study, inclusive education, social policy and social work, urban sociology, and inclusive design. Among the main works on priority topics, she published monographs Disabled People in a Big City: Problems of Social Citizenship and Normalization of the lives of disabled people. In 2024, her textbook Sociology of Disability and Inclusive Education was published.

Olga E. Fomina, Murom Institute (Branch) of the Vladimir State University named after Alexander and Nikolay Stoletovs, Murom, Russia

Olga E. Fomina, Cand. Sci. (Pedagogy), Head of the Department of Educational Work, Associate Professor of the Department of Social and Humanitarian Disciplines at the Murom Institute (Branch) of Vladimir State University named after Alexander and Nikolay Stoletovs. She is the author of 40 research publications. Since 2011, she has led 13 sociological projects devoted to the beliefs of citizens of the Vladimir region, monitoring the drug situation among young people, with an annual coverage of up to 3,000 respondents. Olga E. Fomina has been the chief supervisor of inclusive projects of the Rosmolodezh competition "Borderless Meetings" 2023 and "Borderless Travel" 2024. Her main research interests address inclusive educational environment, stigmatization of people with disabilities, volunteering, art therapeutic technologies, demographic studies.

Anna D. Levshits, Peoples Friendship University of Russia (RUDN University), Moscow, Russia

Anna D. Levshits, Cand. Sci. (Philology), Associate Professor, Department of Foreign Languages, Faculty of Philology; Specialist, Institute of Modern Languages, Intercultural Communication and Migration at the Peoples Friendship University of Russia (RUDN University). Focusing on ethnocultural brand models and dimensions of sociolinguistics, her research interests are focused around the area of Japan, marketing linguistics, marketing communications, minority languages, migration, and modern history.

Ekaterina A. Knyazkova, Institute for Demographic Research—Branch of the Federal Center of Theoretical and Applied Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia

Ekaterina A. Knyazkova, Cand. Sci. (Political Sciences), Leading Researcher at the Institute for Demographic Research—Branch of the Federal Center of Theoretical and Applied Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. She has about 150 scientific publications on the family issues.

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Published
2024-07-19
How to Cite
Naberushkina, E., Fomina, O., Levshits, A., & Knyazkova, E. (2024). Social Profile of Mothers Raising Children With Disabilities: A Survey in Rural and Small-Town Russia. Changing Societies & Personalities, 8(2), 313–333. doi:10.15826/csp.2024.8.2.276
Citation Formats
Issue
Vol. 8, No. 2 (2024): Special Issue “Demographic Well-Being as a Factor of Social Development”
Section
Articles in the Special Section