Control strivings in attaining peer-group membership and forming romantic relationships among adolescents with and without visual impairment

This study compared control striving with regard to two developmental goals in adolescents with visual impairment and sighted peers. A matched-pair design was used with 158 adolescents with visual impairment and 158 sighted peers by using age, gender, habitation (living with ones’ parents vs. other forms of living), and socioeconomic status as matching variables. Adolescents with visual impairment did not differ from sighted peers in control striving with regard to peer-group membership, but they were less active in forming romantic relationships. In addition, there was no difference between the groups in the associations between control strivings and age, gender, goal importance, locus of control, and social support.