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Syndrome-Specific Impact on Parental Well-Being: Autism Compared

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Comprehensive Guide to Autism

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Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to review and evaluate the literature focused on parental well-being across different developmental disorders, specifically comparing parents of children with autism to those of children with other developmental disabilities. This review examines research on psychological outcomes, personal well-being, and coping strategies. Because developmental disorders (e.g., autism, Down syndrome, and fragile X syndrome) present a variety of behavioral phenotypes, families often adapt differently to caring for their child depending upon the unique characteristics and behaviors associated with the disorder. In order to better understand differences in parental adjustment, the studies included in this review have met the following criteria: (a) compared parental adjustment between autism and another developmental disability; (b) utilized measures of parental psychological well-being (e.g., stress), parental personal well-being (e.g., social support), and/or parental coping strategies (e.g., adaptation); and (c) identified disorder-specific effects on parental well-being. In this review, we sought to identify how parents adjust to caring for a child with autism relative to how parents of children with other disabilities make similar adjustments. Overall, findings suggest that parents of children with autism experience stress beyond that experienced by parents of children with other specific syndromes and unique interventions targeting such stress may be required. Implications for future research are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of Education, University of California, SEARCH Family Autism Resource Center, 92521, Riverside, CA, USA

    Sasha M. Zeedyk, Shana R. Cohen & Jan Blacher

Authors
  1. Sasha M. Zeedyk
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  2. Shana R. Cohen
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  3. Jan Blacher
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Correspondence to Sasha M. Zeedyk .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Westminster, Faculty of Science & Technology, London, United Kingdom

    Vinood B. Patel

  2. Nutritional Sciences Division and Genomics Centre, King's College London, London, United Kingdom

    Victor R. Preedy

  3. Faculty of Society and Health, Buckinghamshire New University, Middlesex, United Kingdom

    Colin R. Martin

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Zeedyk, S.M., Cohen, S.R., Blacher, J. (2014). Syndrome-Specific Impact on Parental Well-Being: Autism Compared. In: Patel, V., Preedy, V., Martin, C. (eds) Comprehensive Guide to Autism. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-4788-7_178

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-4788-7_178

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-4787-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-4788-7

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