Exploring Caregiver Perspectives of Social and Motor Skills in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder and the Impact on Participation

Abstract

Participation is a key aspect of quality of life and is essential for children's well-being, yet children with disabilities are at risk for lower participation in social activities. For children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), social skills may present a significant obstacle for participation in activities of daily life; however, motor skill development may also serve an important contributing factor. Nevertheless, the link between social and motor skills in children with ASD is not fully understood. The current research implemented semistructured interviews to garner descriptive insights from caregivers (N = 17) into the social and motor skills of 5-to 9-year-old children with ASD and the impact on participation in social activities. A constant comparative method was used to generate a coherent and thematic representation of caregivers' experiences. Thematic analysis revealed core consistencies in three areas: (1) caregivers viewed participation differently than their children; (2) participation levels of children with ASD are context specific; (3) challenges with social skills were perceived to present a greater obstacle to participation than motor skills. Overall, the notion that ASD is a heterogeneous disorder was made very apparent. Although caregivers believe there to be immense value in current treatment and intervention options, the availability and access to such options was a major barrier. The effectiveness of intervention programming designed to increase participation is contingent on understanding factors that affect participation. Implications concerning caregivers' perspectives are discussed.

Family life and autistic children with sensory processing differences: A qualitative evidence synthesis of occupational participation

“…Twenty-three papers were identified for synthesis from this search and are listed here alphabetically (Burkett et al, 2021 ; Burrows et al, 2008 ; Columna et al, 2020 ; DeGrace, 2004 ; DeGrace et al, 2014 ; Dickie et al, 2009 ; Epstein et al, 2019 ; Galbraith and Lancaster, 2020 ; Harwood et al, 2019 ; Keller et al, 2014 ; Kim et al, 2018 ; Kirkpatrick et al, 2019 ; Larson, 2006 , 2010 ; Marquenie et al, 2011 ; Naik and Vajaratkar, 2019 ; Potter, 2017 ; Redquest et al, 2020 ; Rios and Scharoun Benson, 2020 ; Schaaf et al, 2011 ; Shannon et al, 2021 ; Suarez et al, 2014 ; Tokatly Latzer et al, 2021 ) (see text footnote 2).…”

“…The majority of identified articles were from USA ( N = 11), with other represented countries including Canada ( N = 4) Australia ( N = 4), UK ( N = 1), India ( N = 1), Israel ( N = 1) and Ireland ( N = 1). Most studies used interviews to collect data (DeGrace, 2004 ; Larson, 2006 , 2010 ; Dickie et al, 2009 ; Marquenie et al, 2011 ; Schaaf et al, 2011 ; DeGrace et al, 2014 ; Keller et al, 2014 ; Suarez et al, 2014 ; Potter, 2017 ; Kim et al, 2018 ; Epstein et al, 2019 ; Harwood et al, 2019 ; Naik and Vajaratkar, 2019 ; Columna et al, 2020 ; Redquest et al, 2020 ; Rios and Scharoun Benson, 2020 ; Shannon et al, 2021 ; Tokatly Latzer et al, 2021 ). The remaining studies used focus groups (Kirkpatrick et al, 2019 ; Burkett et al, 2021 ); Qualitative ethology (Burrows et al, 2008 ); and photovoice (Galbraith and Lancaster, 2020 ).…”

“… 2 Note the following numbers are used to represent the 23 articles included as eligible for this meta-ethnographic synthesis: 1, Burkett et al, 2021 , 2, Burrows et al, 2008 , 3, Columna et al, 2020 , 4, DeGrace, 2004 , 5, DeGrace et al, 2014 , 6, Dickie et al, 2009 , 7, Epstein et al, 2019 , 8, Galbraith and Lancaster, 2020 , 9, Harwood et al, 2019 , 10, Keller et al, 2014 , 11, Kim et al, 2018 , 12, Kirkpatrick et al, 2019 , 13, Larson, 2006 , 14, Larson, 2010 , 15, Marquenie et al, 2011 , 16, Naik and Vajaratkar, 2019 , 17, Potter, 2017 , 18, Redquest et al, 2020 , 19, Rios and Scharoun Benson, 2020 , 20, Schaaf et al, 2011 , 21, Shannon et al, 2021 , 22, Suarez et al, 2014 , 23, Tokatly Latzer et al, 2021 . …”

Parents’ Perceptions: Environments and the Contextual Strategies of Parents to Support the Participation of Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder—A Descriptive Population-Based Study from Switzerland

“…Due to the population-based nature of the sample and the fact, that participants identified themselves as parents of children or adolescents with ASD, a participant bias might be possible. Next, as for all parent reports, the possibility of under- or over-rating is inherent (Allonsius et al, 2021 ; Rios & Scharoun Benson, 2020 ). Parents needed to score an environment they are fundamentally connected with.…”

The Need for Sensory-Friendly “Zones”: Learning From Youth on the Autism Spectrum, Their Families, and Autistic Mentors Using a Participatory Approach

“…Yet, research on sensory processing and participation has rarely included the experiences of children and youth with ASD from their first-person perspectives (e.g., see Kirby et al, 2015 as a rare exception). Instead, qualitative studies on the participation of children and youth with ASD have primarily relied on parental perspectives ( Rios and Scharoun Benson, 2020 , see also Howell and Pierson, 2010 ; Lam et al, 2010 ; and Thompson and Emira, 2011 in Askari et al, 2015 ), and only one study focused on the impact of the sensory environment on the participation of children with ASD ( Pfeiffer et al, 2017 ).…”