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International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences

Open Access Journal

ISSN: 2222-6990

Understanding The Multifaceted Challenges Encountered by Foster Parents Caring for Children with Disabilities

Muzairiah Bajuri, Nor Jana Saim, Norulhuda Sarnon, Fauziah Ibrahim

http://dx.doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v14-i3/20993

Open access

Foster parents play a crucial role in the child welfare system by offering a family environment to nurture the children during their challenging period. Parenting is a challenging task under any circumstances, furthermore it is more challenging when for foster parents parenting a child with disabilities. Foster parents who care for children with disabilities have unique responsibilities that involve providing specialized care and support. Therefore, this study was conducted to explore the challenges faced by foster parents who care for children with disabilities. The study also intended to investigate the social support they needed to ensure that they are able to continue and maintain care for their children. This qualitative study used in-depth semi-structured interviews to gather the data among selected foster parents residing in the state of Selangor, Malaysia. The interviews were recorded and transcribed. Further, thematic analysis used to analyse the transcripts by using the Atlas.ti software version 9.0.5. Five themes emerge; full-time caregiver focus, high caregiving costs, lack of expertise in caring for a child with disabilities, education challenges for children with disabilities and foster children require various treatments. Findings could inform policy recommendations to better support foster families and enhance the well-being of children with disabilities.

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(Bajuri et al., 2024)
Bajuri, M., Saim, N. J., Sarnon, N., & Ibrahim, F. (2024). Understanding The Multifaceted Challenges Encountered By Foster Parents Caring for Children with Disabilities. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 14(3), 1259–1276.