South African families raising children with autism spectrum disorders: relationship between family routines, cognitive appraisal and family quality of life.

Tonnsen et al. (2016) asked South African families of children with autism to fill out surveys. They wanted to see if steady daily routines and how parents think about autism affect overall family happiness.

The team looked at three things: how regular the family routines were, how positively parents viewed autism’s impact, and how both linked to family quality of life.

Families who kept predictable routines and who saw autism in a more positive light reported higher family quality of life.

Both factors worked together—routines plus positive thinking boosted happiness more than either one alone.

Schlebusch et al. (2017) surveyed the exact same families one year later and confirmed the pattern, making this a direct replication.

Eussen et al. (2016) seems to disagree at first glance. Their U.S. moms said very rigid routines made days harder, not easier. The clash is only on the surface: L et al. measured overall family happiness, while M et al. tracked day-to-day mood. A steady plan can help the whole family yet still feel tiring on a single tough day.

Gur et al. (2024) built on the 2016 finding by showing family quality of life explains most of a family’s resilience. In short, routines and positive views raise quality of life, and higher quality of life then fuels long-term strength.

You can coach parents to build small, repeatable daily rituals—same wake-up order, same snack spot, same bedtime story. Pair this with brief conversations that re-frame autism’s challenges as differences, not deficits. These two low-cost steps can lift the whole family’s quality of life and, down the line, their resilience.