(WITHDRAWN) Coping Strategies Among Chinese Immigrant Parents Raising Children with Developmental Disabilities: A Scoping Review

Introduction: In the past three decades, numerous studies have been conducted to understand how parents cope with stressors while raising children with developmental disabilities (DDs). However, despite the fact that Chinese people represent the largest ethnic group among Asian Americans and are one of the fastest-growing groups in the United States (Budiman & Ruiz, 2021), no reviews have specifically focused on Chinese immigrant families. Most review studies tend to group Chinese immigrant families with other Asian Americans, but such methodology could be flawed as Asian Americans represent a highly diverse group of people with varying beliefs, socioeconomic status, education, and values (Kim et al., 2007). Therefore, the purpose of this scoping review is to identify coping strategies among Chinese immigrant parents when caring for their children with DDs.

Methods: A scoping review was conducted to understand the coping strategies among Chinese immigrant parents with children with DDs. Four databases, PubMed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and Medline, were used to identify peer-reviewed studies published between January 2000 and December 2020. The keywords included (Chinese AND Chinese immigrant Paren* OR Famil* OR Mother OR Father) AND (Child OR Child*) AND (Disabi* OR Developmental disabilities) AND (Cop* OR Interventio* OR Suppor*). The initial search yielded a total of 713 articles. Inclusion criteria include studies that used qualitative research methods; recruited a sample of Chinese parents of children with DDs; and focused on parents' mental health and coping strategies. After review by two authors independently, 7 articles were included.

Results: Among Chinese immigrant families raising children with DDs, the most prevalent mental health challenges identified across the studies were depression and anxiety. Positive coping strategies were found to be beneficial and encompassed various approaches, such as positive thinking, seeking religious support, adopting problem-focused strategies, engaging in downward comparison, and employing collective coping methods, such as participating in support groups. Researchers found that these positive coping strategies tended to produce better mental health outcomes. Additionally, actively seeking knowledge and skills related to providing care for their children with DDs was found to alleviate parents' mental health issues. In contrast, negative coping strategies, such as avoidance, denial, and passive appraisal of the situation, were found to have negative impacts on parents’ well-being and tended to increase depression.

Conclusion: The findings of this scoping review have important implications. First, the study highlights the experiences of Chinese immigrant families raising children with DDs in the US, providing valuable insight for social workers and other healthcare professionals who work with these families. The findings suggest a need for better support systems to help these families navigate healthcare and social service systems, as well as the development of tailored interventions to improve the mental health outcomes of Chinese immigrant parents. Second, the study underscores the importance of recognizing the diverse experiences among the Asian American population. Future research should focus on exploring the experiences of Chinese immigrant families and other underrepresented ethnic groups, developing culturally sensitive support services and interventions, and evaluating the effectiveness of these interventions.