Evaluation of the self-concept of mothers with educable mentally retarded (EMR) children

Background and purpose: birth of a mentally retarded child is a significant challenge in every family and is associated with the possibility of parental stress and depression. this study aimed to evaluate the self-concept of mothers with educable mentally retarded (emr) children. methods: this cross-sectional study was conducted on 40 mothers with emr children in the only special primary school for these children in aran & bidgol city in isfahan, iran. data were collected using self-concept questionnaires. data analysis was performed using descriptive statistics and fisher’s exact test in spss v.13. results: in this study, total score of the self-concept of mothers was 29.95±7.60, which was relatively desirable. in addition, a significant correlation was observed between the age of children (p=0.02) and family income status (p=0.01) with the scores of maternal self-concept. conclusion: according to the results of this study, higher family income and increased age of emr children are associated with higher self-concept of mothers. it is recommended that future studies be performed on larger sample sizes in this regard.