Health promotion for parents of children with autism spectrum disorder
1 Department of Public and Community Health, University of West Attica, Greece.
2 Net Media Lab & Mind-Brain R&D, IIT, ‘Demokritos’, Athens, Greece.
Research Article
World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 2024, 21(01), 758–769
Publication history:
Received on 27 November 2023; revised on 07 January 2024; accepted on 09 January 2024
Abstract:
Research has shown that parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience high levels of anxiety. The type of disorder and demographic characteristics of the parents can affect anxiety levels. However, parent counseling programs can have a positive impact on parents' effectiveness in their role, which can positively affect their mental health. This study aims to investigate the anxiety levels of parents of children with autism, the impact of counseling programs on parental anxiety, and how demographic characteristics of the parents can affect anxiety levels. The sample consisted of 101 parents of children with ASD attending primary schools across Greece. The data for this study was collected through a questionnaire which included demographic information, questions about the counseling intervention, and the Parenting Stress Index Short-Form scale. The results indicated that the overall level of parental stress was relatively high and that the parents' demographic characteristics influenced the subscales of the Parenting Stress scale. The parents with higher education levels experienced the highest levels of distress, and the highest levels of dysfunctional interaction were observed in parents over 40 years of age and in divorced or unmarried parents. Nearly half of the participants in the study had undergone counseling therapy, which had a predominantly positive impact on improving parent-child interaction. The findings suggest that demographic factors significantly affect levels of parental anxiety and that parents who expressed a desire to enhance their role as caregivers through counseling therapy also reported higher levels of anxiety. Overall, the results highlight the potential benefits of counseling therapy in addressing dysfunctional parent-child interactions and improving parental well-being.
Keywords:
Dyslexia; SEN (Special Educational Needs); Comorbidity; Intervention; Inclusion
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Copyright © 2024 Author(s) retain the copyright of this article. This article is published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Liscense 4.0