Family Quality of Life During the Transition to Adulthood for Individuals With Intellectual Disability and/or Autism Spectrum Disorders.
Fewer problem behaviors and stronger parental faith predict higher family quality of life during the autism transition years.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Ohan et al. (2015) asked parents of teens and young adults with intellectual disability or autism one big question. How good does your family life feel right now?
The parents filled out a survey about family quality of life. They also rated how often their son or daughter showed tough behaviors and how strong their own faith felt.
What they found
Most parents said family life was pretty good, not perfect. The fewer meltdowns, self-harm, or tantrums they saw, the happier they felt.
Parents who said faith was important to them also gave higher marks to family life. Behavior and belief together predicted how satisfied families felt.
How this fits with other research
Emily et al. (2015) looked only at autism and found the same link. Daily living skills matter most for family happiness. That study conceptually repeats the behavior piece L et al. found.
Dai et al. (2024) followed families for a full year after diagnosis. They showed parenting confidence and social support can lift family quality of life over time. L et al. gives a snapshot; Yushen shows the movie.
Shu (2009) saw the opposite on faith. Stronger religion tied to lower quality of life for Taiwanese moms. The clash is only skin-deep. Bih-Ching measured personal QoL; L et al. measured whole-family QoL in the U.S. Different lens, different story.
Why it matters
When you write a transition plan, add goals that cut tough behaviors first. Teach tooth-brushing, laundry, and bus riding. Each skill you build is a stress point you remove from the whole house. Also ask parents what gives them hope. A short chat about faith, community, or future dreams can guide you to supports that lift the entire family.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Recognizing the prominent role of parents in supporting their children with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), improving quality of life for these families is an essential endeavor. While much attention has focused on the experiences of families with younger children with IDD, little is known about the family quality of life (FQOL) among families with transition-age youth and young adults. We examined the FQOL ratings of 425 parents with a child between 13-21 years of age with intellectual disability or autism to understand FQOL and the factors that may shape it. Overall satisfaction with FQOL was somewhat high for this sample, with some variability across domains. Higher FQOL ratings were predicted by lower frequency of challenging behaviors, lower support needs, and higher strength of parental religious faith. We present recommendations for research and practice focused on promoting quality of life during the transition period.
American journal on intellectual and developmental disabilities, 2015 · doi:10.1352/1944-7558-120.5.395