Motherhood with a Disabled Child in Modern Russia: Stereotypes, Risks, Public Opinion

DOI: 10.33876/2311-0546/2021-53-1/73-79

Abstract

The article analyzes the complex of problems faced by a family raising a child with disabilities, based on the author's journalistic and field material, collected among the urban and rural population of the Arkhangelsk region in 2011-2020. The study puts a special emphasis on the role of parents, especially the mother, because single-parent families and single mothers are especially common among families having children with developmental disabilities. All problems related to the care, treatment, education, rehabilitation of a child and earning money are taken over by the mother, who suffers constant stress for many years. Dequalification, deprofessionalization, deterioration of health significantly affect the quality of life of a mother raising a disabled child. Social guarantees and financial assistance offered by the state only partially compensate for the economic costs incurred by families raising a disabled child. Problems are often family-based. The article analyzes the work of social and rehabilitation services, mass media, public opinion of people on such families.

For Citation: Frolova, A.V. 2021. Motherhood with a Disabled Child in Modern Russia: Stereotypes, Risks, Public Opinion. Herald of Anthropology (Vestnik Antropologii) 1 (53): 73–79.

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