Faculty Mentor Information
Dr. Robert Rieske (Mentor), Idaho State University
Abstract
Parental dissatisfaction and negative emotions are frequent during the autism diagnostic process of their child. Understanding parental emotions and the factors which influence those emotions are crucial to aiding diagnosing clinicians to best support parents and their children. Currently, there are mixed results within the literature as to whether parental characteristics- income, education level, and age at diagnosis- or child characteristics- age of symptom onset, count of symptoms, and regression in skills- influence parental emotions when receiving the diagnosis during the feedback session. The present study aims to clarify the discrepancies within the literature regarding which factors impact parental emotions. Participants (N = 519) in this study completed at least part of a Qualtrics caregiver survey. Preliminary analysis show parents most frequently reported emotions of sadness (46.5%) and anxiety (41.2%). It’s hypothesized that parental age, education level, and whether there was regression in their child’s symptoms may be correlated with parental distress when receiving a diagnosis. Further, household income and child age may be correlated with parental comfort when receiving a diagnosis. The final analysis will include a hierarchical regression analysis to determine which attributes are most influential on parental emotions during the feedback process.
Factors Influencing Parental Emotion of an Autism Diagnosis: Preliminary Results
Parental dissatisfaction and negative emotions are frequent during the autism diagnostic process of their child. Understanding parental emotions and the factors which influence those emotions are crucial to aiding diagnosing clinicians to best support parents and their children. Currently, there are mixed results within the literature as to whether parental characteristics- income, education level, and age at diagnosis- or child characteristics- age of symptom onset, count of symptoms, and regression in skills- influence parental emotions when receiving the diagnosis during the feedback session. The present study aims to clarify the discrepancies within the literature regarding which factors impact parental emotions. Participants (N = 519) in this study completed at least part of a Qualtrics caregiver survey. Preliminary analysis show parents most frequently reported emotions of sadness (46.5%) and anxiety (41.2%). It’s hypothesized that parental age, education level, and whether there was regression in their child’s symptoms may be correlated with parental distress when receiving a diagnosis. Further, household income and child age may be correlated with parental comfort when receiving a diagnosis. The final analysis will include a hierarchical regression analysis to determine which attributes are most influential on parental emotions during the feedback process.