ACT Processes in Group Intervention for Mothers of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Fung et al. (2018) ran a short ACT group for moms of kids with autism.

Mothers met in small groups for six weekly sessions.

Before and after, they filled out forms on stress, flexible thinking, and value-based parenting.

Moms felt more flexible and less stuck in harsh thoughts.

They also did more parenting actions that matched their values.

Gains stayed strong three months later.

Shawler et al. (2021) and Yu et al. (2019) both pool many ACT parent studies. Their big-picture view says ACT helps parents, so our 2018 paper is one tile in that mosaic.

Ni et al. (2025) went further. They used a real control group and found medium drops in stress. Their RCT design tops our 2018 pre-post style, giving stronger proof that ACT works.

Li et al. (2023) show CBT and mindfulness groups also cut parent stress. ACT joins that same toolbox, just with a focus on values instead of thought-challenging.

You can add a six-week ACT parent group to your ABA program without long training. Moms leave with less stress and clearer values, which means more follow-through on home programs. Try it during your next parent-ed block.