Abstract
A voluminous body of scientific literature has found that challenging behaviors (CBs) in children with intellectual disabilities (ID) or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are associated to symptoms of anxiety in their parents. There is also emerging evidence that they are linked to post-traumatic symptoms in their parents. However, fewer studies have investigated the psychological adjustment of their siblings. Various studies have found that these siblings display high levels of anxiety, but none has explored their psychological adjustment using a developmental trauma theory. This scoping review aims to take stock of the evidence on the psychological adjustment of siblings of children with ID or ASD and CBs in order to explore if the context in which they grow up and some of their psychological challenges could be understood within the framework of developmental trauma theory. A search was conducted in four databases (PubMed, CINAHL, PsycInfo and Embase), and 42 relevant studies were identified and analyzed. The analysis revealed that siblings of children with ID or ASD and CBs report both a familial context and symptoms that may fit within trauma theory. This scoping review therefore gathers evidence on the psychological adjustment of siblings of children with ID or ASD and CBs while also shedding a new light on some of the experiences they may have using trauma theory. This supports the idea that using trauma theory in this population is relevant and would allow for a better understanding of their reality and the development of resources tailored to their specific needs.
Highlights
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Exposure to the CBs of a sibling with an ID or ASD during childhood appears to be a stressor that can be understood using developmental trauma theory.
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Most selected studies report trauma-related symptoms in siblings of a child with ID or ASD and CBs.
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While selected studies explored some trauma-related symptom domains in theses sibling, none investigate all seven trauma-related symptom domains.
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This study highlights the need to document the effects of CBs on siblings’ psychological adjustment notably by investigating their potentially traumatic impact.
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All authors contributed to the conceptualization of the present paper. Methodology, Data curation and formal analysis were performed by C. R., A. P., M. R. and M. D.. A first draft was written by Corinne Rochefort, and all other authors reviewed and commented the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Rochefort, C., Paradis, A., Rivard, M. et al. Siblings of Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities or Autism: A Scoping Review using Trauma Theory. J Child Fam Stud 32, 3482–3500 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-023-02589-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-023-02589-x