Social Contact and Family Contact for Youth with Disabilities

Abstract

Youth with disabilities may experience unequal patterns of social contact, compared to youth without disabilities. This study uses a nationally representative sample of youth (ages 15–19; N = 6,803) from the American Time Use Survey (2008–2019) to evaluate if and how social contact—defined as time spent with relatives and nonrelatives—differs by youth disability status. Outside the family context, youth with disabilities spent less time with nonrelatives compared to youth without disabilities. Lower social contact with nonrelatives was offset by increased social contact with relatives. Limited social contact outside a youth’s family context has implications for adolescent development. Social contact, and family social contact specifically, may be important forms of developmental support for youth with disabilities.