Relationship between loneliness, hopelessness and social support experienced by mothers with disabled children

The aim of the study was to evaluate the relationship between loneliness, hopelessness and social support experienced by mothers with disabled children. This cross-sectional study was conducted with 106 mothers with disabled children. The data was collected by compiling the Personal Information Form and by applying three main scales: the UCLA Loneliness Scale (UCLA-LS), the Beck Hopelessness Scale (BHS) and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS). The data obtained was analyzed using the number, percentage, mean, correlation, T test, Anova and Mann Whitney U tests. The UCLA-LS mean score of the mothers was 50.56 ± 11.94, the BHS mean score was 10.78 ± 4.93 and the MSPSS mean score was 40.97 ± 13.86. The results showed a positive correlation between the mean scores of the loneliness and hopelessness scale, and a negative correlation between the mean scores of the loneliness and hopelessness scale and the mean MSPSS score (p <.05). As a result of the research findings, mothers with disabled children experienced loneliness and hopelessness and did not receive sufficient social support.