Being the Mother of a Special Child: Resilience and Marital Adjustment in Mothers of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abstract

Background: This study aims to examine the levels and the relationship between resilience and marital adjustment in mothers of a child diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Methods: Seventy mothers with a child diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder who have been followed up in the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic of Bakırköy Training and Research Hospital for Psychiatry Neurology and Neurosurgery and 74 mothers with a typically developing child to form the control group were included in the study. The Childhood Autism Rating Scale was applied to assess the severity of autism symptoms in children. Sociodemographic form, Beck Depression Scale and Beck Anxiety Scale were applied. The Psychological Resilience Scale for Adults was used to assess resilience. The Marital Adjustment Scale was applied to evaluate the participants’ marital adjustment. Results: The level of resilience ( P < .001) and marital adjustment ( P = .002) in mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder were found to be lower when compared to mothers with a typically developing child. There is a negative correlation between the level of resilience and the severity of autism ( P = .002) ( r = −0.361). A positive correlation was found between marital adjustment and resilience ( P < .001) ( r = 0.465). High levels of depressive symptoms ( P = .003), low marital adjustment ( P = .003), and low educational level were found to be predictive of low resilience ( P = .044). Conclusion: Taking advantage of the fact that resilience is a dynamic process, there is a need to develop strategies to increase resilience in mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder, which will also give rise to individual and marital well-being.