The Effectiveness of a Home Visiting Program on Skill Acquisition for Mothers of Young Children with Special Needs
Abstract
Introduction: Home-visiting one of the family-centered approaches—involves specialists systematically visiting families in their homes to support their children’s development and education. A review of the literature reveals that research on home-visiting in Türkiye is limited, and the necessity for this study arises from the need to identify the potential effects of home-visiting on families and their children. In this context, the aim of the study is to enable mothers of children with special needs to teach their children daily living skills through strategies implemented during home-visiting, and to ensure that their children acquire, maintain, and generalize these skills.
Method: The participants comprised four children aged four to six diagnosed with Down syndrome and their mothers. The study employed a multiple-probe design across behaviors, a rigorous single-subject research methodology. The home-visiting program was implemented over a 16-week period. Quantitative data were evaluated using visual analysis, while qualitative social validity data collected from the mothers were analyzed via content analysis.
Findings: The home-visiting program proved effective in helping mothers acquire teaching skills and maintain their implementation accuracy over time. Furthermore, the children successfully acquired daily living skills, maintained them at two, four-, and six-weeks post-intervention, and generalized them across different settings, materials, and behaviors. Social validity results indicated that the mothers stated that the home-visiting program was beneficial, that they had acquired teaching skills, and that their children's independent behavior had improved.
Discussion: The study confirmed that mothers can independently teach their children skills within daily routines, confirming the effectiveness of the strategies used. Furthermore, mothers’ satisfaction with the home-visiting program is consistent with the existing literature.
Conclusion: This study revealed that home-visiting for mothers of children with special needs is effective in helping their children acquire skills. It was observed that the home-visiting program produced positive outcomes for both mothers and children and was reflected in their feedback. Home-visiting plays an important role in supporting children with special needs and their families during the early childhood period.
Keywords
References
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Details
Primary Language
English
Subjects
Special Education and Disability (Other)
Journal Section
Research Article
Early Pub Date
July 15, 2026
Publication Date
-
Submission Date
January 17, 2026
Acceptance Date
July 13, 2026
Published in Issue
Year 2026 Number: Advanced Online Publication