Mental health, broad autism phenotype and psychological inflexibility in mothers of young children with autism spectrum disorder in Australia: A cross-sectional survey

Abstract

Mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder are more likely to have features of the broad autism phenotype and adverse mental health outcomes. The broad autism phenotype can contribute to poorer mental health; however, the mechanism behind this relationship remains uncertain. This study investigated both the predictors of mental health and the relationship between the broad autism phenotype and mental health symptoms in mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder. This cross-sectional survey recruited 232 Australian mothers (⩾18 years) of children with autism spectrum disorder (0–10 years) and assessed maternal broad autism phenotype, mental health, adult attachment style, degree of social support and parenting experience. Hierarchical multiple regressions, t-tests, correlations and mediation analyses were conducted. Psychological inflexibility was the greatest unique predictor of anxious, depressive and stress symptomatology. Challenging parenting experiences predicted depressive, anxious and stress symptomatology while the broad autism phenotype also uniquely predicted anxious symptoms. Both psychological inflexibility and challenging parenting experiences were significant mediators of the relationships between the broad autism phenotype and depressive symptoms and between the broad autism phenotype and anxiety. Psychological inflexibility alone mediated the relationship between the broad autism phenotype and stress. Targeting psychological inflexibility and supporting parenting are promising avenues for future interventions to support the mental health of mothers of young children with autism spectrum disorder. Lay abstract Mothers of children with autism tend to have poorer mental health outcomes compared to most mothers. Lack of social support, parenting challenges and relationship difficulties are more common for mothers of children with autism and can all affect maternal mental health. Mothers of children with autism are also more likely to have some autistic features, called the broad autism phenotype, that can contribute to poorer mental health; however, how these factors relate to one another are unclear. This study found that mothers who were less flexible in their thinking and behaviour and had more difficult parenting experiences tended to have poorer mental health. Mothers with more autistic features were less flexible in their thinking and behaviour, which, in turn, was linked to greater symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress. Mothers with greater autistic features also reported more difficult parenting experiences, which was in turn linked with greater symptoms of anxiety and depression. This study suggests that supporting mothers of young children with autism to manage parenting challenges and become more flexible with their thinking and behaviour could help to improve their mental health.

Efeito Preditivo de Características Comportamentais sobre Ansiedade e Depressão em Mães de Crianças com Autismo / Predictive Effect of Behavioral Characteristics on Anxiety and Depression in Mothers of Children with Autism

“…Outro aspecto que merece atenção na compreensão sobre os mecanismos que envolvem o estresse e a saúde mental de mães de crianças autistas é o baixo nível de flexibilidade cognitiva, característica associada a experiências parentais mais difíceis, que por sua vez estão associadas a maiores níveis de ansiedade e depressão (Correio, Correio, & Correio, 2021;Kulasinghe, et al, 2021…”

“…Mães de crianças com TEA tendem a apresentar piores desfechos em saúde mental e em qualidade de vida quando comparadas a outras mães. É comum que essas mães relatam ter pouco apoio social, problemas em relacionamentos interpessoais e dificuldades na maternidade (Kulasinghe et al, 2021), bem como apresentem maiores níveis de estresse, uma vez que elas historicamente assumem uma carga maior de responsabilidade como cuidadoras primárias (Hou, et al, 2019). Em uma pesquisa desenvolvida por Ang e Loh (2019) com 106 mães e 97 pais de crianças com TEA, as mães apresentaram níveis de estresse significativamente maiores que os pais.…”

Spirituality-based interventions for parents of children with disabilities: A systematic review.

“…Many psychological factors have been studied for their protective role in the well-being of parents of children with disabilities, such as psychological flexibility (Jansen et al, 2017; Kulasinghe et al, 2021; Sairanen et al, 2018), self-compassion (Bohadana et al, 2019; Neff & Faso, 2015; Shenaar-Golan et al, 2021), and hope (Alibakhshi et al, 2021; Sünbül & Gördesli, 2020). Another variable that can serve as a protective factor against negative psychological consequences and an enhancer of psychological well-being for parents of children with disabilities is spirituality (Batalla et al, 2019; Bożek et al, 2020; Ghasemi & Kajbaf, 2019; Kor et al, 2019; Litalien et al, 2021).…”

Diminished emotion recognition with reduced face gaze in complex situation in individuals with broad autism phenotype

“…While individuals with BAP experience higher clinical distress compared to the general population, they do not show clinically severe symptoms that cause social and occupational impairment. These individuals experience significantly higher levels of depression and anxiety compared to the general population and these symptoms could have been caused by their reduced social interaction and social skills ( Kulasinghe et al., 2021 ). Previous studies have focused on the defects in the social interaction of the BAP group.…”