Pre- and Post-COVID-19 Outcomes for Israelis With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in the Community

• Published in: Intellectual and developmental disabilities Vol. 61; no. 6; pp. 454 - 467
• Main Authors: Gur, Ayelet, Soffer, Michal, Blanck, Peter D., Quinn, Gerard, Rimmerman, Arie
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington American Association of Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities 01.12.2023
• Subjects: Anxiety; Community support; COVID-19; Developmental disabilities; Epidemics; Families & family life; Intellectual disabilities; Longitudinal studies; Mental depression; Pandemics; People with disabilities; Post traumatic stress disorder; Quarantine; Social distancing; Well being
• ISSN: 1934-9491; 1934-9556
• DOI: 10.1352/1934-9556-61.6.454

This study is among the first pre–post examinations to explore differences in subjective well-being, adaptive and maladaptive behavior, close relationships, community integration, family members’ satisfaction with residential and community living settings, and family contact before and after the COVID-19 outbreak. Participants demonstrated better life satisfaction and adaptive behavior before COVID-19 than after COVID-19. Participants reported closer relationships with family members and peers before COVID-19 and closer relationships with staff members after COVID-19. The findings reveal mixed, although mostly negative, effects of the pandemic on people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the community in Israel, in accord with extant comparative research.