Exploring the self‐concept of adults with mild learning disabilities

Abstract

Accessible Summary This study tried to find out more about what people with mild learning disabilities think of themselves. Eight adults with mild learning disabilities were interviewed individually. Participants said that they were friendly, helpful, supportive, nice looking, artistic, knowledgeable, independent, capable and religious. Some participants also said that they were anxious, impatient, slow, not normal and were not very mobile. This study shows that more can be done to help people with learning disabilities think more positively about themselves. SummaryThis qualitative study aimed to add to the research on the self‐concept of adults with mild learning disabilities and to generate a deeper understanding of their self‐perceptions rather than draw generalised quantitative conclusions. Eight adults diagnosed with mild learning disabilities receiving support from a supported living project were interviewed individually using a semi‐structured interview. The interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. The data collected were qualitatively analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The findings revealed that the participants described themselves with mostly positive and some negative attributes in the different self‐concept domains.