Siblings' experiences of growing up with children with autism in Taiwan and the United Kingdom.
Culture decides whether autism families feel supported or judged.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Tsai et al. (2018) talked to brothers and sisters of kids with autism.
They spoke with families in Taiwan and in the United Kingdom.
The team asked how life feels when a sibling has autism.
What they found
UK siblings said help is around and views are mixed but not harsh.
Taiwan siblings said people judge them and help is scarce.
Culture, not just autism, shapes the story.
How this fits with other research
Crane et al. (2016) showed UK parents wait years and still dislike the scant help. Joy et al. found UK siblings sense more support—same country, different view, because the first study looked at diagnosis waits and the second at day-to-day life.
Liu et al. (2020) say Taiwan parent-training studies are weak and not culturally tuned. Joy et al. add that Taiwanese families also feel stigma—together the papers explain why programs flop there.
Liao et al. (2022) later found UK and China both lack good ABA and share stigma. Joy’s 2018 UK-Taiwan contrast fits inside this bigger picture: problems repeat across cultures, yet local details matter.
Why it matters
When you write a behavior plan, ask where the family lives. UK parents may welcome parent training; Taiwanese parents may first need stigma shielded. Use Joy’s cue to add cultural questions in your intake forms. One extra page can save months of poor fit.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: A child's diagnosis of autism impacts their whole family, in both positive and negative ways, that may be influenced by cultural beliefs. AIMS: We aimed to describe the experiences of mothers and typically-developing siblings of children with autism in two cultural contexts. METHODS: Fourteen mother-sibling dyads from Taiwan and the UK participated in semi-structured interviews. RESULTS: Whilst there were similarities in sibling experiences, a negative tone regarding the influence of autism was more evident in Taiwan, where families also cited societal judgement and cultural-specific expectations. In the UK, a more balanced tone was apparent: mothers emphasised educating and involving the siblings. It is speculated that UK siblings had a greater understanding of their parents' stress, leading to more adaptive family dynamics. Various types of support service were mentioned in the UK, whereas the availability of social services and support appeared to be relatively limited in Taiwan. IMPLICATIONS: Our data suggest that cultural context may have a significant impact on the responses of the family members. This is mediated by both differences in attitudes and traditions, and availability of resources. Support for family members needs to be sensitive to such cultural differences, as well as recognising positive experiences.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2018 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2018.09.001