Psychological Functioning and Coping Among Mothers of Children With Autism: A Population-Based Study

Abstract

Mothers of children with autism showed remarkable strengths in the parent-child relationship, social support, and stability of the household in the context of high stress and poorer mental health.

Parenting in families with a child with autism spectrum disorder and a typically developing child: Mothers’ experiences and cognitions

“…Similar to the extant literature (Gray, 1994(Gray, , 1997Hutton & Caron, 2005, Montes & Halterman, 2007Phelps, et al, 2009), the parents of young children with ASD in our study reported impaired family functioning in several ways. For example, mothers spoke of how difficult it is to do normal or spontaneous family activities, because family life with a child with ASD has to be very structured and planned.…”

“…The children's restricted social, communicative and emotional competencies, their uneven cognitive development, and their maladaptive behaviour place tremendous stress on parents of children with ASD (Davis & Carter, 2008;Hastings & Johnson, 2001). In comparison to mothers of typically developing (TD) children and mothers of children with other disabilities, mothers of children with ASD report elevated stress levels (Eisenhower, Baker, & Blacher, 2005;Estes, et al, 2009;Montes & Halterman, 2007;Rao & Beidel, 2009) and they are at an increased risk for depression (Olsson & Hwang, 2001). …”

“…Existing research exploring parent's experiences with a child with ASD points to impairments of family functioning such as 'giving up normal family activities and outings', 'lack of spontaneity or flexibility in family life', 'lack of personal social activities', 'stress surrounding the marital relationship', and 'difficulties to maintain employment or to pursue outside activities' (Gray, 1994(Gray, , 1997Hutton & Caron, 2005;Montes & Halterman, 2007;Myers, Mackintosh, & Goin-Kochel, 2009;Phelps, McCammon, Wuensch, & Golden, 2009). In these studies, however, only parents (mainly mothers) of children with ASD of a broad age range (between 3 and 35 years of age) and with a mean age of 10 years and older have been interviewed.…”

Expressed Emotion and Alexithymia in Mothers of Autistic Children

“…The findings indicated that autistic group gained higher scores on the Alexithymia questionnaire (Szatmari, 2008). In contrast, some studies do not support the impact of having autistic children in parents' adaptation (Montes & Halterman, 2007). Despite the widespread interest in studying the autism phenotype, there is now no consensus on its definition (Scheeren & Stauder, 2008).…”

What is the impact of autism on mother–child interactions within families with a child with autism spectrum disorder?

“…Research has shown that the severe and pervasive impairments in communication and social interaction and the maladjusted behaviour in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are a significant source of stress and depressive symptoms for parents of a child with ASD (Eisenhower et al, 2005;Estes et al, 2009;Montes & Halterman, 2007;Olsson & Hwang, 2001;Rao & Beidel, 2009). These impairments and the stress involved also have a considerable impact on parent's interactive behaviour (Hoppes & Harris, 1990;Kasari & Sigman, 1997).…”