The investigation about life quality and hopelessness level of parents with disabled and/or special education needs children living in Greece

This thesis examines the quality of life and hopelessness levels of parents with children who have disabilities and/or special educational needs living in Greece. The purpose of the research is to identify the factors determining these families' quality of life and the relationship between these factors and their levels of hopelessness. In this context, the research was conducted using the general survey model, one of the quantitative research methods, and data was collected from 297 parents living in Greece who have children with disabilities and/or special educational needs. The data collection tools included the "Personal Information Form", the "World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale Short Form" (WHOQOL-Bref), and the "Beck Hopelessness Scale" (BHS). According to the research results, the quality of life of parents with children who have disabilities and/or special educational needs is above average, while their levels of hopelessness are mild. While no significant difference was found between the quality of life of mothers and fathers, it was determined that mothers' levels of hopelessness were higher than those of fathers. The quality of life and hopelessness levels vary according to the parents' age, educational status, employment status, income level, and the degree of their children's disability. Specifically, as the level of education increases, the quality of life improves and levels of hopelessness decrease. These findings highlight the importance of interventions that will improve parents' quality of life and reduce their levels of hopelessness. A negative relationship was found between parents' quality of life and their levels of hopelessness, indicating that as the quality of life increases, levels of hopelessness decrease. Therefore, it is recommended to develop support programs that will enhance the quality of life of parents.