Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Sibling Relationships and Family Functioning in Siblings of Early Adolescents, Adolescents and Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Child and Family Studies Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to investigate how family functioning (defined as the ability that family members hold to manage stressful events, and intimate and social relationships), the degree to which family members feel happy and fulfilled with each other (called family satisfaction), and the demographical characteristics of siblings (age and gender) impacted on sibling relationships. The Circumplex Model of Marital and Family Systems and Behavioral Systems constituted the theoretical frameworks that guided our study. Eighty-six typically developing adolescents and young adults having a sister or a brother with autism spectrum disorder were enrolled. Results indicated that the youngest age group (early adolescents) reported to engage more frequently in negative behaviors with their siblings with ASD than the two older age groups (middle adolescents and young adults). No significant differences were found among the three age groups regarding behaviors derived from attachment, caregiving and affiliative systems. Family satisfaction and age significantly predicted behaviors during sibling interactions. Suggestions on prevention and intervention programs were discussed in order to prevent parentification among typically developing siblings and decrease episodes of quarrels and overt conflicts between brothers and sisters with and without ASD.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Al-Yagon, M. (2015). Externalizing and internalizing behaviors among adolescents with learning disabilities: contribution of adolescents’ attachment to mothers and negative affect. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24, 1343–1357.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Bägenholm, A., & Gillberg, C. (1991). Psychosocial effects on siblings of children with autism and mental retardation: a population-based study. Journal of Mental Deficiency Research, 35, 291–307.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baiocco, R., Cacioppo, M., Laghi, F., & Tafà, M. (2013). Factorial and construct validity of FACES IV among Italian adolescents. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 22, 962–970.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baker, B. L., Blacher, J., & Olsson, M. B. (2005). Preschool children with and without developmental delay: Behaviour problems, parents’ optimism and well-being. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 49(8), 575–590.

  • Baker, J. K., Seltzer, M. M., & Greenberg, J. S. (2011). Longitudinal effects of adaptability on behavior problems and maternal depression in families of adolescents with autism. Journal of Family Psychology, 25, 601–609.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Barnes, H. L., & Olson, D. H. (1985). Parent-adolescent communication and the Circumplex model. Child Development, 56, 438–447.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Benderix, Y., & Sivberg, B. (2007). Siblings’ experiences of having a brother or sister with autism and mental retardation: a case study of 14 siblings from five families. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 22, 410–418.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and loss: Volume 1, attachment. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boyle, C. A., Boulet, S., Schieve, L. A., Cohen, R. A., Blumberg, S. J., & Yeargin-Allsopp, M. et al. (2011). Trends in the prevalence of developmental disabilities in US children, 1997–2008. Pediatrics, 127(6), 1034–1042.

  • Cicirelli, V. G. (1995). Sibling relationships across the lifespan. New York: Plenum Publishers.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Earlbaum Associates.

  • Curran, P. J., West, S. G., & Finch, J. F. (1996). The Robustness of Test Statistics to Nonnormality and Specification Error in Confirmatory Factor Analysis. Psychological Methods, 1(1), 16–29.Please correct the date for the following citation (2017 and not 2016 as reported in the main document).

  • Daniel, L. S., & Billingsey, B. S. (2010). What boys with autism spectrum disorder say about establishing and maintaining friendships. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 25, 220–230.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dellagiulia, A., Palummieri, A., & Mecenate, C. (2011). Le relazioni interpersonali in adolescenza alla luce della teoria dell’attaccamento. Un primo utilizzo in Italia del questionario “Network of Relationships Inventory”. Orientamenti Pedagogici, 58, 619–640.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dumontheil, I. (2016). Adolescent brain development. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 10, 39–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Furman, W. (1999). Friends and lovers: The role of peer relationships in adolescent romantic relationships. In W. A. Collins & B. Laursen (Eds.), Relationships as developmental contexts: The 30th Minnesota symposia on child development (pp. 133–154). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Furman, W., & Buhrmester, D. (2009). The network of relationships inventory: behavioral system version. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 33, 470–478.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Gau, S. S. F., Chou, M. C., Chiang, H. L., Lee, J. C., Wong, C. C., & Chou, W. J., et al. (2012). Parental adjustment, marital relationship, and family function in families of children with autism. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 6, 263–270.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • George, C., & Solomon, J. (2008). The caregiving system: A behavioral systems approach to parenting. In J. Cassidy & P. R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical implications (2nd ed., pp. 833–856). New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gilchrist, A., Green, J., Cox, A., Burton, D., Rutter, M., & Le Couteur, A. (2001). Development and current functioning in adolescents with Asperger’s syndrome: a comparative study. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 42, 227–240.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hartley, S. L., Barker, E. T., Baker, J. K., Seltzer, M. M., & Greenberg, J. S. (2010a). Marital satisfaction and life circumstances of grown children with autism across 7 years. Journal of Family Psychology, 26, 688–697.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hartley, S. L., Barker, E. T., Seltzer, M. M., Floyd, F., Greenberg, J., & Orsmond, G. I., et al. (2010b). The relative risk and timing of divorce in families of children with an autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Family Psychology, 24, 449–457.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Hartley, S. L., Barker, E. T., Baker, J. K, Seltzer, M. M., & Greenberg, J. S. (2012). Marital satisfaction and life circumstances of grown children with autism across 7 years. Journal of Family Psychology, 26, 688–697.

  • Higgins, D. J., Bailey, S. R., & Pearce, J. C. (2005). Factors associated with functioning style and coping strategies of families with a child with an autism spectrum disorder. Autism, 9, 125–137.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hooper, L. M., Doehler, K., Wallace, S. A., & Hannah, N. J. (2011). The parentification inventory: development, validation, and cross-validation. American Journal of Family Therapy, 39, 226–241.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jellett, R., Wood, C. E., Giallo, R., & Seymour, M. (2015). Family functioning and behaviour problems in children with autism spectrum disorders: the mediating role of parent mental health. Clinical Psychologist, 19, 39–48.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaminsky, L., & Dewey, D. (2001). Siblings relationships of children with autism. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 31, 399–410.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • La Greca, A. M., & Harrison, H. M. (2005). Adolescent peer relations, friendships, and romantic relationships: do they predict social anxiety and depression? Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 34(1), 49–61.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Laghi, F., Federico, F., Lonigro, A., Levanto, S., Ferraro, M., Baumgartner, E., & Baiocco, R. (2016a). Peer and teacher-selected peer buddies for adolescents with autism spectrum disorders: the role of social, emotional, and mentalizing abilities. The Journal of Psychology: Interdisciplinary and Applied, 150, 469–484.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laghi, F., Lonigro, A., Levanto, S., Ferraro, M., Baumgartner, E., & Baiocco, R. (2016b). The role of nice and nasty theory of mind in teacher–selected peer models for adolescents with autism spectrum disorders. Measurement and Evaluation in Counseling and Development, 49, 207–219.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, G. K. (2009). Parents of children with high functioning autism: how well do they cope and adjust? Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities, 21, 93–114.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lonigro, A., Baiocco, R., Baumgartner, E., Sette, S., & Laghi, F. (2016). Persuasion in school-aged children: how does it change if the persuadee is the mother or the peer? Cognitive Processing. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10339-016-0776-3.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lonigro, A., Laghi, F., Baiocco, R., & Baumgartner, E. (2014). Mind reading skills and empathy: evidence for nice and nasty ToM behaviours in school-aged children. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 23, 581–590.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manor-Binyamini, I. (2011). Mothers of children with developmental disorders in the Bedouin community in Israel: family functioning, caregiver burden, and coping abilities. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 41, 610–617.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mascha, K., & Boucher, J. (2006). Preliminary investigation of a qualitative method of examining siblings’ experiences of living with a child with ASD. British Journal of Developmental Disabilities, 52, 19–28.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McHale, S. M., Updegraff, K. A., & Feinberg, M. E. (2016). Siblings of youth with autism spectrum disorders: theoretical perspectives on sibling relationships and individual adjustment. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 46, 589–602.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • McHale, S. M., Updegraff, K. A., & Whiteman, S. D. (2012). Sibling relationships and influences in childhood and adolescence. Journal of Marriage and Family, 74, 913–930.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Minunchin, P. (1985). Families and individual development: provocations from the field of family therapy. Child Development, 56, 289–302.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olson, D. H., McCubbin, H. I., Barnes, H., Larsen, A., Muxen, M., & Wilson, M. (1989). Families: What makes them work. Los Angeles, CA: Sage.

  • Olson, D. H. (1993). Circumplex model of marital and family systems. In F. Wals (Ed.), Normal family processes (2nd ed., pp. 514–548). New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olson, D. H. (2011). Faces IV and the Circumplex model: validation study. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 3, 64–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olson, D. H., & Gorall, D. M. (2006). FACES IV and the Circumplex model. Resource document. http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.567.7299&rep=rep1&type=pdf.

  • Olson, D. H., McCubbin, H. I., Barnes, H., Larsem, A., Muxen, M., & Wilson, M. (1998). Families: What makes them work. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Orsmond, G. I., & Seltzer, M. M. (2007b). Siblings of individuals with autism or down syndrome: effect on adult life. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 51, 682–696.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Orsmond, G. I., & Seltzer, M. M. (2007a). Siblings of individual with autism spectrum disorders across the life course. Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 13, 313–320.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pace, U., Zappulla, C., & Di Maggio, R. (2016). The mediating role of perceived peer support in the relation between quality of attachment and internalizing problems in adolescence: a longitudinal perspective. Attachment and Human Development, 18, 508–524.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Petalas, M. A., Hastings, R. P., Nash, S., & Duff, S. (2015). Typicality and subtle differences in sibling relationships: experiences of adolescents with autism. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24, 38–49.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Petalas, M. A., Hastings, R. P., Nash, S., Dowey, A., & Reilly, D. (2009). “I like that he always shows who he is”: the perceptions and experiences of siblings with a brother with autism spectrum disorder. International Journal of Disability Development and Education, 56, 381–399.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pruitt, M. M., Willis, K., Timmons, L., & Ekas, N. V. (2016). The impact of maternal, child, anmd family characteristics on the daily well-being and parenting experiences of mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder. Autism, 20, 973–985.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Renzaho, A., Mellor, D., McCabe, M., & Powell, M. (2013). Family functioning, parental psychological distress and child behaviours: evidence from the Victorian child health and wellbeing study. Australian Psychologist, 48, 217–225.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rivers, J. W., & Stoneman, Z. (2003). Sibling relationships when a child has autism: marital stress and support coping. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 33, 383–394.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rivers, J. W., & Stoneman, Z. (2008). Child temperaments, differential parenting, and the sibling relationships of children with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 38, 1740–1750.

  • Rosencbusch, K., & Cseh, M. (2012). The cross-cultural adjustment process of expatriate families in a multinational organization: a family system theory perspective. Human Resource Development International, 15, 61–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rossiter, L., & Sharpe, D. (2001). The siblings of individuals with mental retardation: a quantitative integration of the literature. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 10, 65–84.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rutter, M. (2005). Incidence of autism spectrum disorders: changes over time and their meaning. Acta Paediatrica, 94, 2–15.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sikora, D., Moran, E., Orlich, F., Hall, T. A., Kovacs, E. A., & Delahaye, J., et al. (2013). The relationship between family functioning and behavior problems in children with autism spectrum disorders. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 7, 307–315.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stoneman, Z. (2001). Supporting positive sibling relationships during childhood. Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 7, 134–142.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stoneman, Z. (2005). Siblings of children with disabilities: research themes. Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 43, 339–350.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tomeny, T. S., Barry, T. D., Fair E. C., & Riley R. (2017). Parentification of Adult Siblings of Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 26(4), 1056–1067.

  • White, L. (2001). Sibling relationships over the life course: a panel analysis. Journal of Marriage and Family, 63, 555–568.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zeman, J., Casssano, M., Perry-Parrish, & Stegall, S. (2006). Emotion regulation in children and adolescents. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, 27, 155–168.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

Author Contributions

F.L. and A.L. designed and executed the study and wrote the paper. S.P. and R.B. collaborated with the design and writing of the study. F.L. analyzed the data and wrote part of the results. A.B., A.G., and G.M. collaborated with the recruitment of participants and with data scoring. F.L., S.P., A.L., and R.B. collaborated in the writing and editing of the final manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Developmental and Social Psychology, Sapienza Università di Roma, Rome, Italy

    Fiorenzo Laghi, Antonia Lonigro, Ambra Bechini, Alexandra Gradilone, Graziana Marziano & Roberto Baiocco

  2. Department of Education, Roma Tre University, Rome, Italy

    Susanna Pallini

Authors
  1. Fiorenzo Laghi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Antonia Lonigro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Susanna Pallini
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Ambra Bechini
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Alexandra Gradilone
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Graziana Marziano
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Roberto Baiocco
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Fiorenzo Laghi.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Laghi, F., Lonigro, A., Pallini, S. et al. Sibling Relationships and Family Functioning in Siblings of Early Adolescents, Adolescents and Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder. J Child Fam Stud 27, 793–801 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0921-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-017-0921-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation