ACT Dad Interview: ACT for Fathers of Children With Special Needs

A Qualitative Study to Develop a Protocol Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for Fathers of Children With Special Needs in Improving Their Psychological Flexibility and Mental Health

The goal of this qualitative study is to develop a therapy protocol for fathers of children with special needs in Hong Kong. The therapy is called Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), which helps people cope with difficult emotions by building psychological flexibility - the ability to accept and adjust to hard situations. The main questions it aims to answer are:

1. What are the experiences and needs of fathers raising children with special needs?
2. What content and format of an ACT programme would be most helpful for these fathers?

Researchers will conduct focus group interviews with two groups of participants: fathers raising children with special needs and social workers who work with these families. The interviews will take about 60 to 90 minutes each.

Participants will:

1. Take part in a recorded focus group interview
2. Share their experiences, challenges, and views on what an ACT program should include

The findings will be used to develop a protocol for an ACT programme to improve the mental health of fathers raising children with special needs.

Informants will include 2 groups, 1) fathers rearing children with special needs and 2) social workers.

For fathers,

Inclusion Criteria:

1. are the biological fathers of children aged 2 to 12 years,
2. are with a child having a formal diagnosis of a developmental disability, including autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, intellectual disability, or related neurodevelopmental conditions,
3. are able to speak Cantonese and read Chinese.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Fathers with physical or cognitive impairment
2. Father with learning problems as identified from NGO or related medical records

For social workers,

Inclusion Criteria:

1. have experience in working with biological fathers of children aged 2 to 12 years who have a formal diagnosis of a developmental disability, including autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, intellectual disability, or related neurodevelopmental conditions,
2. are able to speak Cantonese and read Chinese.