O que significa ter uma criança com deficiência mental na família?

What does it mean to have a mentally retarded child in the family?

DOSSIÊ: EDUCAÇÃO ESPECIAL

O que significa ter uma criança com deficiência mental na família?¹

What does it mean to have a mentally retarded child in the family?

Nara Liana Pereira Silva^I; Maria Auxiliadora Dessen^II

^IDoutora em Psicologia. Universidade de Brasília. [e-mail]

^IIDoutora em Psicologia. Professora do Instituto de Psicologia, Universidade de Brasília. [e-mail]

RESUMO

A família desempenha um papel preponderante no processo de inserção e adaptação da criança deficiente mental no contexto sociocultural. A literatura tem mostrado similaridades e diferenças não só quanto aos modos como as famílias se relacionam com sua criança com deficiência mental, mas também quando comparadas com famílias de crianças com desenvolvimento típico. Este artigo tem como objetivo descrever alguns aspectos do funcionamento de famílias de crianças com deficiência mental, comparando-os àqueles de famílias de crianças com desenvolvimento típico. Ênfase é dada às relações entre os diferentes subsistemas familiares: marido-esposa, genitores-criança e irmão-irmão, e suas implicações para o desenvolvimento infantil. Conhecer a dinâmica das relações de famílias de crianças com deficiência mental constitui o primeiro passo para a compreensão do desenvolvimento e dos mecanismos de adaptação dessas famílias às suas crianças. Mas, para compreender o funcionamento dessas famílias, é preciso levar em consideração as descobertas recentes da genética comportamental.

Palavras-chave: deficiência mental, crianças pré-escolares, família, relações familiares.

ABSTRACT

The family plays an important role in the adaptation process of children with mental retardation in the socio-cultural context. Literature has showed us similarities and differences not only in the way that families have been interacting with their mentally retarded child, but also between them and families of typically developing children. So, this article aims to describe some aspects of the family functioning of children with mental retardation comparing them to those from families of children with a typical development. We emphasize the relationships developed in different family subsystems, i.e. husband-wife, parents-child, and child-sibling. In order to understand the family development and adaptation process of children with mental retardation, we need, firstly, to know how these families function. However, to understand the family functioning we need to take into account what we know about behavioural genetics nowadays.

Key-words: mental retardation, preschool children, family, family relations.

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Texto recebido em 15 jul. 2003

Texto aprovado em 24 nov. 2003

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1

Este artigo é uma versão modificada da introdução da tese de doutorado da primeira autora, orientada pela segunda. As autoras agradecem o apoio do CNPq.

Datas de Publicação

• Publicação nesta coleção
  04 Mar 2015
• Data do Fascículo
  Jun 2004

Histórico

• Recebido
  15 Jul 2003
• Aceito
  24 Nov 2003