Marriage Patterns and Societal Perceptions of Individuals With Intellectual Disability: Caregivers’ Perspectives

Although people with intellectual disability have the right to marriage, societal perceptions may play a crucial role in either facilitating their opportunities or creating barriers. This study seeks to deepen the understanding of how caregivers perceive the marital opportunities of individuals with intellectual disability, as well as the associated concerns and society's roles in enhancing such opportunities. Utilizing an interpretive qualitative research approach, we collected data from 18 caregivers through in-depth semistructured interviews and focus group. The findings uncovered four main themes: right to marriage, intersection of disability and gender, marital concerns, and society's role in enhancing marital opportunities and stability, in addition to a number of subthemes. Implications and future directions are discussed according to the findings.