Self-Acceptance and Social Support as Predictors of Gratitude among Parents of Children with Special Needs.

Penerimaan Diri dan Dukungan Sosial sebagai Prediktor Kebersyukuran pada Orang Tua dari Anak Berkebutuhan Khusus

Authors

  • Lailatul Izzah Institut Agama Islam Diniyyah Pekanbaru
  • Eva Yuliza Institut Agama Islam Diniyyah Pekanbaru
  • Leviana Nur Fadhillah Institut Agama Islam Diniyyah Pekanbaru

Keywords:

Self Acceptance, Social Support, Gratitude, PArents of Children with Special Needs, Positive Psychology

Abstract

This study aims to examine the role self-acceptance and sosial support as predictors of gratitude among parents of children with special needs. This research employed a quantitative survey design. A total of 76 parents of children with special needs from a public special education school in Pekanbaru. Indoensia, werw selected using random sampling. Data were collected using standardized psychological scales measuring self-acceptance, social support, and gratitude. Statistical analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS version 20 for Windows to assess the predictive contribution of self-acceptance and social support to gratitude. The findings reealed that the levels of self-acceptance (97.36%), social support (86.84%), and gratitude (100%) were predominantly in the high category. Regression analysis indicated that self-acceptance and social support significantly predicted gratitude, with a contribution value of 0.207, meaning that both variables explained 20.7% of the variance in gratitude among parents of children with special needs. The study highlights the importance of strengthening internal psychological resources (self-acceptance) and external support systems (social support) to foster gratitude in parents raising children with special needs. However, the study is limited by its relatively small sample size and focus on a single institution, which may affect generalizability. Future research should include broader samples and additional psychosocial variables. This study contributes to the positive psychology literature by examining gratitude from both intrapersonal and interpersonal perspectives in the context of parenting children with special needs—an area that remains underexplored, particularly within Indonesian cultural settings.

References

Arikunto, S. (2002). Prosedur penelitian: Suatu pendekatan praktik. Rineka Cipta.

Azwar, S. (2004). Reliabilitas dan validitas. Pustaka Pelajar.

Cohen, S., & Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98(2), 310–357. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.98.2.310

Crnic, K. A., & Low, C. (2002). Everyday stresses and parenting. In M. H. Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting (Vol. 5, pp. 243–267). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Dabrowska, A., & Pisula, E. (2010). Parenting stress and coping styles in mothers and fathers of pre-school children with autism and Down syndrome. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 54(3), 266–280. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2788.2010.01258.x

Diener, E., Oishi, S., & Lucas, R. E. (2003). Personality, culture, and subjective well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 54, 403–425. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.54.101601.145056

Emmons, R. A., & McCullough, M. E. (2003). Counting blessings versus burdens: An experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(2), 377–389. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.84.2.377

Emmons, R. A., & Shelton, C. M. (2002). Gratitude and the science of positive psychology. In C. R. Snyder & S. J. Lopez (Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology (pp. 459–471). Oxford University Press.

Hurlock, E. B. (2006). Cohen, S. and Wills, T.A. (1985) ‘Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis’, Psychological Bulletin, 98(2), pp. 310–357. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.98.2.310.

Emmons, R.A. and McCullough, M.E. (2003) ‘Counting blessings versus burdens: An experimental investigation of gratitude and subjective well-being in daily life’, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(2), pp. 377–389. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.84.2.377.

Mangunsong, F. (2011) Psikologi Pendidikan Anak Berkebutuhan Khusus. Jilid Kedu. Depok: Lembaga Pengembangan Sarana Pengukuran dan Pendidikan Psikologi (LPSP3), Fakultas Psikologi Universitas Indonesia.

Peterson, C. and Seligman, M.E.P. (2004) Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. Oxford University Press.

Ryff, C.D. (1989) ‘Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being’, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57(6), pp. 1069–1081. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.57.6.1069.

Santrock, J.W. (2012) Life Span Development : Perkembangan Masa Hidup Jilid I (B. Widyasinta, Penerj.). Jakarta: Erlangga.

Sarafino, E.P.,& Smith, T.. (2011) Healt psychology : Biopsychosocial Interactions. United States of America: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Sarafino, E.P. and Smith, T.W. (2011) Health psychology: Biopsychosocial interactions. 7th edn. Wiley. Personality development. Tata McGraw-Hill.

King, L. A., & Hicks, J. A. (2009). Positive affect, meaning in life, and future time perspective. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 28(3), 247–270. https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.2009.28.3.247

Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. Springer.

Peterson, C., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2004). Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. Oxford University Press.

Pistrang, N., & Barker, C. (1995). The partner relationship in psychological response to breast cancer. Social Science & Medicine, 40(6), 789–797. https://doi.org/10.1016/0277-9536(94)00136-D

Ryff, C. D. (1989). Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57(6), 1069–1081. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.57.6.1069

Sarafino, E. P., & Smith, T. W. (2011). Health psychology: Biopsychosocial interactions (7th ed.). Wiley.

Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A visionary new understanding of happiness and well-being. Free Press.

Taylor, S. E. (2011). Health psychology (8th ed.). McGraw-Hill.

Wood, A. M., Froh, J. J., & Geraghty, A. W. (2010). Gratitude and well-being: A review and theoretical integration. Clinical Psychology Review, 30(7), 890–905. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2010.03.005

Downloads

Published

2026-06-30

How to Cite

Izzah, L., Yuliza, E., & Fadhillah, L. N. (2026). Self-Acceptance and Social Support as Predictors of Gratitude among Parents of Children with Special Needs.: Penerimaan Diri dan Dukungan Sosial sebagai Prediktor Kebersyukuran pada Orang Tua dari Anak Berkebutuhan Khusus. Nathiqiyyah, 9(1), 125–133. Retrieved from https://ojs.diniyah.ac.id/index.php/Nathiqiyyah/article/view/2069