The Adjustment of Non-Disabled Siblings of Children with Autism

Abstract

This study compared the psychosocial and emotional adjustment of siblings of children with autism and siblings of non-disabled children. In addition, differences between self and parent reports, as well as various demographic characteristics were examined. Fifty-one siblings of children with autism and 35 siblings of non-disabled children, between the ages of 7 and 17, along with one parent of each sibling, participated. Results indicated that the presence of a child with autism appears to enhance the psychosocial and emotional development of non-disabled siblings when demographic risk factors are limited. However, the presence of a child with autism appears to have an increasingly unfavorable impact on the non-disabled sibling as demographic risk factors increase.

The psychophysiological impact of childhood autism spectrum disorder on siblings

“…These findings also resonate with those from a recent meta analysis, in which siblings of children with DD, including ASD, reported higher levels of depressive symptoms compared to a control group (Vermaes et al, 2012). That some studies have observed no effect (Benson & Karlof, 2008, Di Biasi et al, in press;Tomeny et al, 2012) or an adaptive effect (Macks & Reeve, 2007) of childhood disability on siblings' psychological functioning might be explained by methodological variations. That is, many previous studies used parent reports to measure siblings' psychological adjustment to having a brother/sister with a DD.…”

“…Scale responses range from 0, symptom free to 2, showing definite symptoms, with higher scores reflecting greater depressive symptoms. The CDI-2 has been shown to have good internal consistency in previous studies involving siblings of children with ASD (Macks & Reeve, 2007), and this was also the case here (α = 0.90).…”

“…Findings from a review paper (Barlow & Ellard, 2006) and recent meta analysis (Vermaes, van Susante, & van Bakel, 2012) also suggested that siblings of children with a DD might be at greater risk for psychological adjustment difficulties, with internalising behaviours and depressive symptoms found to be higher when compared with a control group. However, not all findings have been consistent, such that several studies observed no effect (Benson & Karlof, 2008;Di Biasi et al, in press;Tomeny, Barry, & Bader, 2012), or an adaptive effect (Macks & Reeve, 2007), of childhood disability on siblings' psychological functioning. These inconsistent findings highlight the need for additional research in this area.…”

“…For example, to alleviate some of the burden on their parents, siblings often take on additional household chores and responsibilities (Dyke Mulroy, & Leonard, 2009), thus limiting opportunities for social and peer interaction, and extracurricular activities (Barak-Levy, Goldstein, & Weinstock, 2010;Moyson & Roeyers, 2012). In addition, parents, who are overburdened by their caregiving role, have been found to be less physically and emotionally available for their other children (Macks & Reeve, 2007).…”

“…For example, family characteristics such as socioeconomic status (Macks & Reeve, 2007;Petalas et al, 2009), family size (Kaminsky & Dewey, 2002;Labay & Walco, 2004) and parental stress (Giallo & Gavidia-Payne, 2006) have been shown to predict emotional and internalising problems in siblings of children with a DD. In addition, research has shown that siblings' psychological well being is, at least in part, affected by characteristics of their disabled brother/sister, especially their behavioural problems.…”