Thoughts, Attitudes and Experiences of Parents of Children with Disabilities in the Republic of North Macedonia About Comprehensive Sexuality Education

When it comes to sexuality education, people with disabilities are often left out of the conversation. Many believe that these people are asexual, sexually inactive, that they do not need sexual education, that they cannot and should not have sexual relations and cannot/should not have love relationships and start a family. The main purpose of the research is to determinate thoughts, attitudes, knowledge and personal experience of the parents of children with disabilities regarding comprehensive sexuality education of their children. The data were collected through a survey of 54 respondents, parents of persons/children with disabilities from different regions in the Republic of N. Macedonia. Data were analyzed using the SPSS program and Chi square and Fisher exact test. From the data, it can be concluded that the majority of parents covered by this research are not familiar with the most appropriate age at which sexual education should begin. Around 57% of parents completely agreed with the statement that sex education should be part of the educational program in schools and only 38.9% of parents believe that their child should study all subjects. Children with disabilities need developmentally appropriate sex education to stay safe and healthy and to achieve self-determination.