Aspect Research Centre for Autism Practice, Autism Spectrum Australia, Flemington, Victoria, Australia.
Department of Educational Studies, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Autism Res. 2020 Oct;13(10):1797-1801. doi: 10.1002/aur.2341. Epub 2020 Jul 3.
Research has consistently shown that parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are more likely to report chronic stress and symptoms of psychopathology when compared to parents of typically developing children and children with other psychological or physical conditions. Certain individual characteristics might either put parents at risk or allow them to cope more effectively under the strenuous conditions of raising children with neurodevelopmental conditions. Previous research has suggested that higher levels of intolerance of uncertainty and certain coping styles are associated with higher parental levels of anxiety and depression. The aim of this study is to characterize the way in which intolerance of uncertainty and coping (avoidant and problem-focused coping) predict mental health and psychological wellbeing in parents of children with ASD. Only mothers participated in this study. Fifty mothers (M = 44.28 years, SD = 6.58) of children with ASD completed questionnaires assessing anxiety and depression, psychological wellbeing, intolerance of uncertainty, and avoidant and problem-focused coping. The results from this study provide preliminary evidence that higher use of problem-focused coping but not avoidant coping and intolerance of uncertainty predicts psychological wellbeing. Furthermore, our observation of greater intolerance of uncertainty and higher use of avoidant coping predicting anxiety and depression supports previous research. The findings from this study have implications for the development of intervention programs to help improve the mental health and psychological wellbeing of parents. LAY SUMMARY: This research studied the factors that impact the mental health of parents of children on the autism spectrum. We found that mothers, who are not comfortable with uncertainty, use more avoidant coping, and less problem-focused coping have poorer mental health. Identifying these factors is a crucial first step in developing intervention programs to help improve the mental health of parents. Autism Res 2020, 13: 1797-1801. © 2020 International Society for Autism Research and Wiley Periodicals LLC.
研究一直表明，与发育正常的儿童和患有其他心理或身体疾病的儿童的父母相比，自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）儿童的父母更有可能报告慢性压力和精神病理学症状。某些个体特征要么使父母面临风险，要么使他们能够在抚养有神经发育障碍儿童的艰苦条件下更有效地应对。先前的研究表明，不确定性容忍度较高和某些应对方式与父母的焦虑和抑郁水平较高有关。本研究旨在描述不确定性容忍度和应对方式（回避和问题焦点应对）如何预测 ASD 儿童父母的心理健康和心理幸福感。只有母亲参与了这项研究。 50 名 ASD 儿童的母亲（M = 44.28 岁，SD = 6.58）完成了评估焦虑和抑郁、心理幸福感、不确定性容忍度以及回避和问题焦点应对的问卷。这项研究的结果提供了初步证据，表明更多地使用问题焦点应对而不是回避应对和不确定性容忍度预测心理幸福感。此外，我们观察到更大的不确定性容忍度和更高的回避应对预测焦虑和抑郁，这支持了先前的研究。这项研究的结果对制定干预计划以帮助改善父母的心理健康和心理幸福感具有启示意义。
