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What is a Good Mother of Children with Autism? A Cross-Cultural Comparison Between the U.S. and Japan

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Abstract

This study compared the characteristics of ‘good mothers’ of children with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) as perceived by mothers of children with ASD in two countries—the U.S. and Japan. Grounded in the theory of culturally-influenced construal of the self, we hypothesized that U.S. mothers would prioritize fostering self-reliance and advocating for their child’s well-being while Japanese mothers would prioritize maintaining close and harmonious relationships with their child. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 52 U.S. and 51 Japanese mothers of children with ASD about the characteristics of a good mother of a child with ASD (GMA) and characteristics of a good mother in general (GMG) and compared the frequencies of ‘good mother’ categories emerging from thematic analysis. Mothers of children with ASD in both countries viewed guiding children as the most important characteristic for both GMG and GMA. As hypothesized, U.S mothers tended to emphasize a mother’s active role in advocating for her children, getting her child services and intervention, and educating herself about ASD. In contrast, Japanese mothers tended to value a mother’s ability to accept her child, know her child well, and provide adequate support for her child based on a child-oriented perspective. The mother’s role of advocating for her child and educating herself emerged more frequently in responses regarding GMA than GMG in the U.S. sample. The study revealed cultural differences in characterization of GMA, suggesting that more indirect models of instruction may be effective for different cultural groups.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Social Science Research Council Abe Fellowship and a generous donation from Landmark Charities.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Early Childhood Education, College of Education, Hokuriku Gakuin University, Kanazawa, Japan

    Noriko Porter

  2. Louis A. Faillace, MD Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston/McGovern Medical School, Houston, USA

    Noriko Porter & Katherine A. Loveland

  3. Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center, Phoenix, USA

    Hannah Honda

  4. Division of Clinical Psychology, Graduate School of Human Development and Environment, Kobe University, Kobe, Japan

    Takahiro Yamane

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  1. Noriko Porter
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  2. Katherine A. Loveland
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Correspondence to Noriko Porter.

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Porter, N., Loveland, K.A., Honda, H. et al. What is a Good Mother of Children with Autism? A Cross-Cultural Comparison Between the U.S. and Japan. J Autism Dev Disord (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-023-06232-y

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