Being a parent of a Syrian migrant child with special needs living in a temporary accommodation centre

Kocaoğlu A., GÜNER N.

Disability and Society, 2025 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Publication Date: 2025
  • Doi Number: 10.1080/09687599.2025.2505856
  • Journal Name: Disability and Society
  • Journal Indexes: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, International Bibliography of Social Sciences, Periodicals Index Online, ATLA Religion Database, Child Development & Adolescent Studies, CINAHL, EBSCO Education Source, EBSCO Legal Collection, EBSCO Legal Source, Education Abstracts, Educational research abstracts (ERA), Index Islamicus, MLA - Modern Language Association Database, Political Science Complete, Psycinfo, Public Affairs Index, Social services abstracts, Sociological abstracts, Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
  • Keywords: culturally and linguistically diverse families, inclusive education for migrant children, interpretative phenomenological analysis, Migrant children with special needs, Syrian migrant parents, Temporary Accommodation Centre
  • Eskisehir Osmangazi University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

This study examines the experiences of being a parent to a child with special needs for eight Syrian migrant parents living in Temporary Accommodation Centres established in Türkiye to meet the basic needs of Syrian migrants. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the parents, and the data were analysed using an interpretative phenomenological analysis approach. Five themes were identified through data analysis: life in Temporary Accommodation Centre, the process of educational evaluation and diagnosis, special education services in Temporary Accommodation Centres, being a parent to a child with special needs in Temporary Accommodation Centres, and parents’ expectations. The findings indicate that living in Temporary Accommodation Centres s with a child with special needs is physically and mentally exhausting for parents, who describe having a child with special needs as experiencing a ‘second war’ and express significant concerns about the future. The data have been discussed, and various recommendations have been made.