Symptom profiles and correlates of anxiety and depression among parents of autistic girls and boys.
Total scores hide the real story—item-level patterns differ by child sex, age, and IQ.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team sent surveys to parents of autistic girls and boys. They asked about anxiety and depression one item at a time.
They wanted to see if the pattern of answers differed by the child’s sex, age, or IQ.
What they found
Total anxiety and depression scores looked the same for both groups.
Yet single items told a different story. Parents of girls and parents of boys checked different somatic boxes. Child age and IQ shaped these item-level patterns.
How this fits with other research
Fahmie et al. (2013) pooled many studies and showed parents of kids with autism feel far more stress than other parents. Bitsika et al. (2021) zoom in to say the stress is not felt the same way in every parent.
Snow et al. (2016) found higher dysphoric mood across the whole sample. The new paper keeps that big picture but adds a magnifying glass: look item-by-item and split by child sex.
Singh et al. (2017) showed family support can cut maternal depression in India. Vicki et al. do not test support, yet their item maps could guide where support is most needed for each sex.
Why it matters
When you screen parents, do not stop at the total score. One parent may score mild yet mark heavy sleep loss; another may score equal but report panic only. Ask which items are checked, then note if the child is a girl or boy, older or younger, higher or lower IQ. This quick habit lets you tailor respite, parent training, or doctor referrals to the exact aches each parent reports.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Although it has been reported for some time that parenting an autistic child is associated with elevated anxiety and depression, no direct comparison has been published regarding the relative anxiety and depressive states of parents of an autistic son versus an autistic daughter. AIMS: To investigate the presence of differences in anxiety and depression in parents of autistic girls and boys, and to identify if there were any meaningful child-based correlates of those states. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: A sample of 51 parents of young autistic males (M age = 10.2 yr, SD = 2.8 yr, range to 6-17 yr) and 51 parents of autistic females (M age = 10.1 yr, SD = 2.7 yr, range to 6-17 yr) completed the GAD7 and PHQ9. Autistic children were assessed for IQ and autism severity. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Although there were no significant differences between the two sets of parents' GAD7 or PHQ9 total scores, there were significant and meaningful differences at the individual GAD7 and PHQ9 item level. Moreover, when examined at the within-child-sex subgroup level, different aspects of the autistic sons' and daughters' age and IQ were correlated with specific items from the GAD7 and PHQ9. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Because these items were somatic in nature, implications are discussed for possible treatment strategies with these parents.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2021 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2021.103874