The Quality of the Home Environments of Young Children with Disabilities

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Abstract
This study aimed to analyze the home environment of young children with disabilities. Data related to overall home environment was collected from 145 mothers by using the Turkish Form of the Home Screening Questionnaire (HSQ-T), while the home learning environment including the involvement of the mothers and the learning materials available in the home was assessed through individual interviews with mothers. The finding revealed that the 50.35 percent of the children live in low-quality homes and whereas the remainders live in high-quality homes based on the cut-off points of the HSQ-T score. The HSQ-T scores were found to be significantly related to parental involvement, education level and income of the mothers, and the developmental functions of the children measured by the Abilities Index. The mothers who live in less crowded homes participated in activities with their children more than those in the other group. Additionally, a comparison of the home quality of CWDs with and without access to home-made toys revealed a significant difference in the HSQ- T scores of the two groups of children, and finally, the maternal involvement was found to be the main predictor of the home environment of children.

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