Professional Resource

Tingstrom, Dh, and Lb Bischoff. "Siblings of children with disabilities:
Psychological and behavioural characteristics.." Counseling Psychology
Quarterly 4.4 (1991):311-321.

"Siblings of children with disabilities: Psychological and behavioral characteristics"

In this article the reader learns about a study they conducted to “assess the behavioral and psychological characteristics of siblings of children with disabilities and the perceptions of parents and children regarding sibling relationships” (Tingstrom and Bischoff, p. 311). I found this article very interesting especially after reading, We’ll Paint the Octopus Red, by Stephanie Stuve-Bodeen. I have always been interested in finding out about siblings of children with disabilities and how it affects their lives. This article was very long, so I chose to focus on the beginning of the article when the authors, Tingstrom and Bischoff, talked about their research on the sibling relationship and how many factors affect the outcome of the relationship. Tingstrom and Bischoff stated, “Sibling relationships in families with children with disabilities are complex and may be mediated by a number of variables. Care-taking responsibilities, age, birth order, individual temperament, socioeconomic status, and severity of disability may determine whether siblings are negatively or positively affected by the presence of siblings with disabilities” (Tingstrom and Bischoff, p.311). Throughout this article they talked about how “Although many studies have found negative effects for siblings of children with disabilities, a number of studies suggest that the presence of children with disabilities does not necessarily indicate that siblings without disabilities will develop problems” (Tingstrom and Bischoff, p.311). They even indicated that, “several studies suggest that the presence of a child with a disability may provide siblings with an opportunity for positive growth” (Tingstrom and Bischoff, p.311). In this article they also include a quote from an older brother of a child with autism. He stated, "Being in a family with someone 'special' to take care of not only makes you mature faster but gives you more experience and a better understanding of how to handle people as well"(Tingstrom and Bischoff, p.311).

This article made me realize that there are many factors that determine how positive or negative a relationship is with siblings of children with disabilities. I believe this article was written in a very clear and concise way, showing different ways that siblings can be affected by other siblings with disabilities. After reading this article and reflecting on the pictures books about disabilities, I learned that specifically the books I critically reviewed on disabilities can become great teaching tools to inform anyone on specific and general disabilities and would be a great start to begin forming positive relationships for siblings.