Parenting Stress and Closeness

Abstract

Mothers of children diagnosed with autism (N = 104) reported higher levels of stress than mothers of typically developing children (N = 342) on 13 of 14 subscales of the Parenting Stress Index. The only scores that did not differ were from the Attachment subscale, which indicates lack of emotional closeness and rather cold patterns of parent-child interaction. Mean Child Domain subscale scores for mothers in the autism group were at the 99th percentile; mean scores on the Attachment subscale were at about the 50th percentile for both groups. Despite substantial stress, mothers of children with autism report close relationships with their children. Results substantiate the need to develop interventions to help these mothers reduce their stress.

Perceived Stress and Coping Styles among Malay Caregivers of Children with Learning Disabilities in Kelantan

“…Our finding was consistent with previous studies that found parents of individuals with learning disabilities to be under considerable stress (5)(6)(7)(8)10). Higher stress levels in caregivers might increase susceptibility to stress-induced illness and affect the adjustment to taking care of their child with learning disability.…”

“…Previous works showed that the parenting stress level is higher in parents of children with learning disabilities than in parents of normal children (5)(6)(7)(8) …”

Parent and Family Outcomes of PEERS: A Social Skills Intervention for Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder

“…Parents of children with ASD experience higher levels of parenting stress than parents of typically developing children (e.g., Duarte et al 2005;Hayes and Watson 2012;Hoffman et al 2009;Rao and Beidel 2009) as well as parents of children with other developmental disabilities (e.g., Estes et al 2009Estes et al , 2012Schieve et al 2007Schieve et al , 2011. This is concerning given that high levels of parenting stress are associated with diminished child outcomes over time following intervention (Osborne et al 2008a, b).…”

Siblings of children with autism: Predictors of adjustment

“…Raising a child with autism or another developmental disability is often stressful for parents and can affect sibling adjustment as well. Hoffman, Sweeney, Hodge, Lopez-Wagner and Looney (2009) found parental stress to be higher among mothers of children with autism compared to both mothers of typical children and mothers of children with developmental delays. Children with an intellectual disability often have higher levels of behavior problems than children without an intellectual disability (Baker et al, 2003).…”