Quality of Life, Coping Styles, Stress Levels, and Time Use in Mothers of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Comparing Single Versus Coupled Households

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the influence of differences in household status on the parental stress, coping, time use and quality of life (QoL) among mothers of children with autism spectrum disorders. Forty-three single and 164 coupled mothers completed the survey. Data were analysed using multivariate logistic regression. We found that single mothers were 1.05 times more likely to report lower levels of environmental QoL. Whilst they were 1.73 times more likely to use acceptance coping style, this association did not persist after adjusting for total number of children, household income and employment status. There was no difference in time use and stress between these mothers. Possible environmental issues for single mothers and implications for future research are discussed.

Appropriateness of the TOBY Application, an iPad Intervention for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Thematic Approach

“…Hence, generalisation of study findings to fathers, lower socioeconomic populations, and parents living in major cities may be limited. However, participants in this study are likely to be representative of those who are most likely to use the TOBY app and other ICT interventions, given mothers in families of a child with ASD are more likely to adopt primary caregiver roles, such as delivering home-based interventions like the TOBY app, compared to families without children with ASD (McAuliffe, Cordier, Vaz, Thomas, & Falkmer, 2017;Nealy, O'Hare, Powers, & Swick, 2012) Finally, although the primary researcherthe interviewerdeclared no conflict of interest with the TOBY app at the beginning of each interview, due to resourcing issues, the primary researcher conducted 20% of the assessments in the RCT. Participants in this study could perceive a conflict of interest and tailor their responses accordingly.…”

Stress, Coping, and Quality of Life in Families with a Child with ASD Living Regionally

“…People living in LDP areas may lack viable formal support options, such as limited access to: adequately trained support professionals, mental health services, and information, and increased travel time to obtain necessary supports due to having to travel vast geographical distances. These factors may restrict parents' ability to adopt problem-focused and positive coping strategies and encourage the use of avoidant coping strategies (Hoogsteen & Woodgate, 2013a;Lai et al, 2015;McAuliffe et al, 2017;McAuliffe et al, 2016).…”

“…Furthermore, there is evidence to suggest that coping strategies used by parents of children with ASD could be different when compared to parents of typically developing children or children with other disabilities, due to the differences in social environments (e.g., poorer social supports and limited access to service) often experienced by this group (Hastings et al, 2005;Lai et al, 2015). Few studies have defined and categorised different types of coping strategies used by parents who have a child with ASD (Benson, 2010;Hastings et al, 2005;McAuliffe, Cordier, Vaz, Thomas, & Falkmer, 2017) and none have done so with families living in regional or remote areas in the Australian context. It is plausible that people living in regional areas in Australia may exhibit different coping mechanisms due to the unique context in which they live, such as limited social support and poorer access to services.…”

Economic burdens on parents of children with autism: a literature review

“…The result revealed that although mothers acknowledge the attractiveness of work, they can only make sacrifices to assume the role of a mother. According to Mcauliffe et al, 29 single mothers who have children suffering from autism confronted obvious financial disadvantages as a consequence of inadequate employment opportunities and job security policies. Hodgetts et al 30 evaluated potential outcomes of professional support services for mothers of autistic children.…”