ACT-based interventions for reducing psychological distress in parents and caregivers of children with autism spectrum disorders: Recommendations for higher education programs

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Group Intervention for Parents of Children with Disabilities (Navigator ACT): An Open Feasibility Trial

“…Parents' learning pivotal ACT skills such as experiential acceptance, flexible and mindful attentiveness to stimuli, verbal distancing (e.g., from negative judgments of their own parenting) and value-based and contextually sensitive action-taking may have not only resulted in increased parental well-being but also in more adaptive and effective parenting practices. This, in turn, may have resulted in children becoming better adjusted, as the ACT literature has suggested (Juvin et al, 2021;Leeming & Hayes, 2016;Prevedini et al, 2020;Whittingham & Coyne, 2019).…”

“…The learned behaviors that lead to PF are seen as pivotal skills that determine the long-term effects of stress and distress as they promote resilience and adaptive coping (Leeming & Hayes, 2016). A high level of PF is associated with both greater well-being and better family functioning (Lappalainen et al, 2021;Prevedini et al, 2020). In addition, high parental PF has been linked to more adaptive and effective parenting practices, as well as higher-quality and more-frequent parent-child interactions (Leeming & Hayes, 2016;Shea & Coyne, 2011).…”

“…ACT interventions for parents address mindful and flexible parenting, experiential acceptance of the child and oneself, and acknowledgment of the role of language in unhelpful parenting patterns. Behavioral changes are grounded in the ability to take an observer's stance on one's own and the child's behavior, allotting time for an analysis of the situation, and then making the choice to use flexible, value-directed parenting actions or take self-care measures (Prevedini et al, 2020). The assumption is that automatic, punitive, rigid parenting practices will diminish, and skills such as engaging in flexible attention (e.g., perspective-taking, mindfulness, and use of reinforcement) will increase (Cheron et al, 2009;Prevedini et al, 2020).…”

“…Behavioral changes are grounded in the ability to take an observer's stance on one's own and the child's behavior, allotting time for an analysis of the situation, and then making the choice to use flexible, value-directed parenting actions or take self-care measures (Prevedini et al, 2020). The assumption is that automatic, punitive, rigid parenting practices will diminish, and skills such as engaging in flexible attention (e.g., perspective-taking, mindfulness, and use of reinforcement) will increase (Cheron et al, 2009;Prevedini et al, 2020). Parents' increased PF may "launch a positive spiral" that, in turn, contributes to greater satisfaction in parenting and improved welfare for the entire family (Leeming & Hayes, 2016).…”

“…Furthermore, internet-delivered ACT has been found to be effective in helping parents of children with chronic conditions and disabilities (Lappalainen et al, 2021;Sairanen et al, 2019); and likewise, an ACT-enriched parent training program has been reported to be superior to traditional parenting training for parents of children with CP or acquired brain injury (Brown et al, 2015;Whittingham et al, 2016). Given the common reference point of parenting a child with any type of disability, and for the sake of enhancing future upscaling and implementation, a review (Byrne et al, 2020) and a proof-of-concept paper (Prevedini et al, 2020) point to transdiagnostic ACT protocols as a possible alternative to diagnosis-specific manuals. This is logical, as ACT is a transdiagnostic therapy (Dindo et al, 2017).…”