Families’ perspectives in career transition planning for adolescents with Down Syndrome in the underserved Sizwe community
Nettie Nobukosi Ndou-Chikwena & Maximus Monaheng Sefotho
Abstract
This study examined families’ perspectives and lived experiences regarding career transition planning for adolescents with Down Syndrome (DS) in an underserved Sizwe community in Soweto, South Africa. Using a phenomenological design, this qualitative study employed purposive sampling to select ten families of adolescents with DS and four Community-Based Organisations (CBOs). Semi-structured telephone interviews with participants were conducted between May and June 2025. Survey data from CBOs complemented family perspectives. Thematic analysis was used to analyse data. Ethical considerations were prioritised. Four themes emerged: families demonstrated limited awareness of systematic career transition planning, relying on faith-based coping and external agents; financial constraints emerged as the primary barrier to accessing services and saving for children’s futures; families recognised children’s strengths but lacked resources to develop these into career pathways; and families perceived schools as primarily responsible for career transition planning, reflecting uncertainty about their own role. CBOs offered general support but lacked specialised career transition planning programs for families and individuals with DS. Faith-based affirmations substitute seeking practical resources to nurture and develop specific skills or creating career transition plans that would actively prepare adolescents for independence in post-school settings. Recommendations include specific national policy guidelines that promote the post-school transition of special school graduates and collaborative partnerships in career transition planning among families, schools, and CBOs. The study is limited to the perspectives of one community, which may not reflect experiences and perspectives on the subject under study in other underserved communities.
Keywords
adolescents, Down Syndrome, developmental disabilities, families, career-transition planning, underserved communities
Author information & Contribution
Nettie Nobukosi Ndou-Chikwena. Corresponding author. PhD. Post-Doctoral Fellow, University of Johannesburg. Email: nettienc@uj.ac.za
Maximus Monaheng Sefotho. PhD. Lecturer, University of Johannesburg. Email: msefotho@uj.ac.za
"NNNC conceptualised the study, conducted data collection, and reported the research findings. MMS supervised and edited the manuscript."
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Funding
This work was not supported by any funding.
Institutional Review Board Statement
The study received ethical approval from the University of Johannesburg’s Research Ethics Committee.
Data and Materials Availability
The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
AI Declaration
AI tools were not used in writing this paper.
Notes
Acknowledgement
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Cite this article:
Ndou-Chikwena, N.N. & Sefotho, M.M. (2026). Families’ perspectives in career transition planning for adolescents with Down Syndrome in the underserved Sizwe community. International Review of Social Sciences Research, 6(1), 204-233. https://doi.org/10.53378/irssr.353316
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