Comparing Fathers' and Mothers' Perspectives About Their Child's Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Fathers of autistic kids talk about stress and coping differently than mothers—so ask both parents, not just moms.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Mammarella et al. (2022) sent surveys to both moms and dads who have a child with autism.
They asked each parent how much stress they feel and how they cope.
The team then compared the fathers’ answers with the mothers’ answers.
What they found
Fathers scored very differently from mothers on stress and coping scales.
The gap was big enough that the authors say we must stop asking only moms about family stress.
How this fits with other research
Lai et al. (2015) already showed that ASD parents feel more stress than typical parents. C et al. add that within ASD families, dads and moms do not feel the same.
Saré et al. (2020) found fathers join speech therapy less often than mothers. C et al. now show dads also report stress and coping in their own way, giving one reason why they may hang back.
Samadi et al. (2014) looked at quality-of-life predictors for both parents, but C et al. go deeper by mapping exact father-mother differences in stress and coping, updating the picture.
Why it matters
If you only ask mom during intake, you miss half the story. Add two quick father-only questions about stress and coping. This tiny step can boost dad engagement and give you a fuller behavior-intervention plan.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Mothers are often the primary parent participants in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) research. As a result, little is known about fathers' perceptions regarding their children's ASD and whether these perceptions differ from mothers'. Given the limited information available regarding fathers' perceptions about their children's ASD, this study aimed to investigate father variables (stress, coping, support, and perception of disability) and how they compare to mothers'. Participants were 361 biological parents (294 mothers and 67 fathers) of children on the autism spectrum who participated in a larger study. Results revealed significant differences between mothers' and fathers' self-reported stress and coping. Understanding differences between parents' perspectives has both research and clinical implications for working with families raising children on the autism spectrum.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2022 · doi:10.1007/s10803-019-04359-5