Mental Health Interventions for Parent Carers of Children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder: Practice Guidelines from a Critical Interpretive Synthesis (CIS) Systematic Review

Abstract

Parent carers of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often report increased levels of stress, depression, and anxiety. Unmet parent carer mental health needs pose a significant risk to the psychological, physical, and social well-being of the parents of the child affected by ASD and jeopardize the adaptive functioning of the family as well as the potential of the child affected by ASD. This systematic review identifies key qualities of interventions supporting the mental health of parent carers and proposes practitioner-parent carer support guidelines. A search of four databases (Medline, PubMed, PsycINFO, and Social Science Data) was conducted to identify studies that met the following criteria: (1) an intervention was delivered to parent carers of a child with ASD under the age of 18 years; (2) the research design allowed for a comparison on outcomes across groups; and (3) outcome measures of the parent carers’ mental health were used. A total of 23 studies met the inclusion criteria. A critical interpretive synthesis approach was used to produce an integrated conceptualization of the evidence. Findings suggest practitioner guidelines to support the mental health and wellbeing of parent carers should include addressing the parent’s self-perspective taking and skill for real time problem-solving.

The Effect of Group Counseling in Reducing Parental Stress and Depression in Jordanian Mothers of Children with Autism

“…Moreover, this study is consistent with the meta-analyses (Catalano et al, 2018;Da Paz & Wallander, 2017) that have demonstrated the role and effectiveness of group CBT and stress management dealing with parents' perspectives and emerging problem-solving skills to improve maternal mental health.…”

“…The most promising interventions included cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), stress management skills, relaxation techniques, expressive writing, mindfulness-based stress reduction, and acceptance and commitment therapy. And in a systematic review by Catalano et al (2018) evaluated 23 studies conducted in 13 countries, including Jordan, on the use of therapeutic programs to improve the mental health of parents of children with AD, with the specific aim of identifying the basic features common to all these interventions. They reported that therapeutic interventions should encompass parental self-perspective-taking and real-time problem-solving.…”

Perceptions of social support: comparisons between fathers of children with autism spectrum disorder and fathers of children without developmental disabilities

“…, Catalano et al . ) and that more directed parent support is needed (Siklos and Kerns ; Smith et al . ; Cadman et al .…”

The Incredible Years Autism Spectrum and Language Delays Parent Program: A Pragmatic, Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial

“…Similar to other research, levels of parental stress were elevated compared to population expectations for the United Kingdom. The mental well-being of parents of children with ASD has been highlighted as an important area of research [Catalano, Holloway, & Mpofu, 2018] and numerous interventions have been evaluated [Da Paz & Wallander, 2017]. The data from the current trial suggest that, in future studies, parental well-being outcomes should be assessed among the outcomes and/or examined as moderators of intervention effectiveness.…”