Title : Sex education for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities: A case study on parents’ perspectives.

Status: Ongoing (Dec 2019 -)

Sexuality is one of the pillars of being human, it is something which is irremovable and puberty is bound to occur in every human being irrespective of whether the individual is disabled or not disabled. In persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), challenging behaviors and other difficulties might get expressed during puberty. Also, very little is known about what happens after early adulthood in this aspect. In addition to this, persons with ID are 4 times more vulnerable to sexual abuse than without, McDaniels & Fleming (2016). Sex education is therefore not an option but a necessity for persons with IDD. The purpose of this study was to know the perspectives of parents (at Nagpur, Central India) regarding sex education and to find out the support they need to impart sex education to their children.

Methods: Semi-structured interviews of parents of persons with IDD were conducted. The inclusion criterion was the parent (mother or father) who spends maximum time with her/his offspring. In total 6 mothers were interviewed in-person (one mother had 2 sons with autism). The age-group of their offspring was from 13-40 years and diagnosis types included autism, cerebral palsy, down-syndrome, intellectual disability and learning disability.

TMcDaniels, B., & Fleming, A. (2016). Sexuality education and intellectual disability: Time to address the challenge. Sexuality and Disability, 34(2), 215-225.