Parental Perceptions of the Lifestyle Changes Associated with Having an Autistic Child [electronic resource] : A Gender Comparison / Patricia Blair and Others.
Lifestyles of parents of autistic children were assessed through volunteer participation in a telephone survey, and comparisons were made between responses of mothers (N=21) and fathers (N=12). Almost half of the fathers contacted did not answer the survey. The study examined a variety of therapy-re...
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| Format: | Electronic eBook |
| Language: | English |
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[S.l.] :
Distributed by ERIC Clearinghouse,
1996.
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| Summary: | Lifestyles of parents of autistic children were assessed through volunteer participation in a telephone survey, and comparisons were made between responses of mothers (N=21) and fathers (N=12). Almost half of the fathers contacted did not answer the survey. The study examined a variety of therapy-related and demographic variables, including parental optimism at diagnosis, parental optimism during treatment, financial burdens associated with therapy, and stress levels of individuals and their spouses. The impact of an autistic child on participants' marriages was also examined, including the question of how much quality time participants were able to spend alone or with their spouse. Most respondents felt that having an autistic child had added stress to their marriages, with 31 percent reporting an adverse impact on their marriage and 34 percent reporting that they felt their marriage had been strengthened by their experience. Thirty-nine percent of the families pay the total cost of behavioral treatment without any assistance. Mothers spent significantly more time supervising their children's therapy; few other gender differences were found. Self-selection of participants may have favored inclusion of more involved fathers, reducing the opportunity to assess parental gender differences in attitudes and stress levels. (PB) |
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| Item Description: | ERIC Document Number: ED390236. |
| Physical Description: | 15 p. |