Perceived needs of and support for Puerto Rican mothers of young children with disabilities

The study compared the family needs and sources of support as perceived by 55 Puerto Rican mothers of young children with disabilities residing in Puerto Rico (PR) and 39 of their counterparts living in Florida (FL). The relationship between (a) perceived family needs and sources of support and (b) mother and child characteristics was also explored. The ABILITIES Index, the Family Needs Survey, and the Family Support Scale were used in the interview process to measure, respectively, mothers' perception of (a) child's extent of delay, (b) family needs, and (c) sources of support. Multiple regression analyses indicated that family needs did not differ in the PR and FL samples. Mothers from the PR sample did, however, perceive significantly more sources of support than mothers in the FL sample. Implications for early interventionists working with Puerto Rican families of young children with disabilities are discussed.