Social Participation and Disability among Children from Underserved Immigrant and Nonimmigrant Households

Abstract

The population of immigrant children in the United States has increased dramatically. Little is known about how immigrant children, especially those with disabilities, fare on outcomes relevant to occupational therapy such as participation in home, school, and community activities. Using secondary data from the Making Connections survey, we compared social participation outcomes and predictors for children with/without disabilities from underserved immigrant and nonimmigrant households in a sample of 2,295 children aged 3 to 17 years. We found that social participation rates differed significantly for children based on their disability and immigrant status and were lowest for immigrant children with disabilities. Several contextual factors were found to be associated with social participation of immigrant children, such as health insurance coverage, household education, household connectedness with the neighborhood, and access to computers and the Internet. Implications of these findings for occupational therapy practice and research are discussed.

Children's behavioural and emotional reactions towards living with congenital heart disease in Saudi Arabia: A grounded theory study

“…Immigration and speech and recall issues were influencing factors to the immigrant families of children with CHD. The struggles of immigrant families were extended due to poor socialisation, including school performance among immigrant children in the United States 42 . Schooling of many migrant children worldwide is delayed or disturbed because of the migration and travelling process 43 .…”

The missing link to sustainable participation in community-based physical activity after rehabilitation: a qualitative study about experiences of immigrant parents and their children with disabilities

“…Local and rehabilitation professionals also need to consider how socioeconomic factors in uence immigrant children's participation in leisure activities (12). Social participation among immigrant children with and without disabilities is signi cantly in uenced by household socioeconomic factors (12,38). In Norway, like other countries, immigrants have incomes lower than the average population (40).…”

“…Participating in leisure activities provides an opportunity for enjoyment, making new friendships, and social cohesion among children (38,46). Immigrant families, especially those raising children with disabilities, may not have a developed social network in their host countries and are at risk of becoming socially isolated (12,47). Therefore, offering activities and supporting these families to participate in activities in the local community is important (47).…”

“…They face complex barriers to participation (11) related to environmental, psychological, and physical factors (10). Children with immigrant backgrounds and disabilities have even lower rates of participation compared with their nonimmigrant counterparts (12).…”

Factors that influence the participation of individuals with deafblindness: A qualitative study with rehabilitation service providers in India

“…As participation directly relates to the quality of life and overall life satisfaction for people with disabilities, it is a highly valued outcome for rehabilitation professionals (Hammel et al, 2008; Hammell, 2015; Magasi et al, 2009). However, most participation research focuses on participation experiences of people with mobility-related impairments living in high-income countries (Hammel et al, 2015, 2008; Magasi et al, 2009; Mallinson & Hammel, 2010; Martin Ginis et al, 2017; Meulenkamp et al, 2013; Mirza et al, 2015; Tsai et al, 2017; Wong et al, 2017) and hence may not adequately identify the challenges faced by people living with deafblindness, and those in low- or middle-income countries (Jaiswal, Kumar, & Paul, 2018).…”