The Role of Demographic and Autism Specific Factors on the Level of Depression in Autistic Adults.
Parents of autistic kids say they’re depressed, but their body stress signs look normal—so ask, don’t measure.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Sicimoğlu et al. (2026) asked parents of autistic children about their mood and stress. They also checked heart rate and other body signs of stress.
The team compared what parents said to what their bodies showed.
What they found
Parents reported more depression, anxiety, and distress than typical adults. Yet their heart rate and stress chemicals looked almost normal.
In short, parents felt bad inside even when their bodies looked calm.
How this fits with other research
Gregory et al. (2020) pooled many studies and found about one in three autism parents are depressed. Ayşesu’s numbers line up with that big picture.
Seymour et al. (2018) showed that dads with low support or poor jobs feel worse. Ayşesu adds that moms and dads both feel bad, not just dads.
Monnier et al. (2026) tracked families for three years and found parent and child distress stay steady over time. Ayşesu’s snapshot fits: distress is common and sticks around.
Why it matters
You can’t spot a struggling parent with a heart-rate monitor. Ask directly about mood and coping. Add a quick depression screen to every intake. Offer support groups or brief therapy, because parents’ own reports—not their pulse—tell you when they need help.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have been reported as experiencing higher levels of stress and poorer physical health than parents of typically developing children. However, most of the relevant literature has been based on parental self-reports of stress and health. While research on physiological outcomes has grown in recent years, gaps still exist in our understanding of the physiological effects, if any, of stress related to parenting a child with ASD. The present study compared parent-reported stress, anxiety, and depression, as well as selected physiological measures of stress (i.e., cortisol, alpha-amylase, and ambulatory blood pressure and heart rate) between matched groups of parents of children with (N = 38) and without (N = 38) ASD. Participants completed questionnaires, collected saliva samples for the purpose of measuring cortisol and alpha-amylase, and wore an ambulatory blood pressure monitor for 24 h. Parents of children with ASD reported significantly higher levels of parental distress, anxiety, and depression than parents of typically developing children. Parent-reported distress, anxiety, depression, and health were not correlated with physiological measures. With the exception that parents of children with ASD had significantly lower cortisol levels 30 min after waking, no other significant group differences were found for physiological measures. Parents of children with ASD reported significantly higher use of a number of adaptive coping strategies (e.g., emotional support) in comparison to parents of typically developing children. Results are discussed in the context of implications for future research directions, stress research, and practical implications for parental support.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2026 · doi:10.1111/j.1600-0447.1983.tb09716.x