Mothers and fathers’ difficulties in the relationship with children with the Autistic Spectrum Disorder

Abstract

The characteristic impairments of the Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) may lead children to present limitations in their development, maintenance, and understanding of socio-affective relationships. Therefore, this study investigated the difficulties reported by mothers and fathers in the relationship with their children at risk of ASD or diagnosed with ASD. The participants were eight mothers and eight parents of children at risk of ASD or diagnosed with ASD by means of responding to a semi-structured interview script. From the parents’ report, it was possible to identify that, for most of them, the main difficulty in the relationship with their children was due to the impairments in interactive communication present in the children with risk/diagnosis of ASD. Besides, the parent-child bond built through daily care activities or through playful activities allows the occurrence of behaviors sometimes compromised in ASD. Thus, it is necessary to invest in the bonds with children at risk or diagnosis of this disorder, since they are responsible for the development of compromised aspects of ASD, such as shared attention responsible for the development of interactive communication.

Keywords: Autism Spectrum Disorder, mother-child relationship, father- child relationship.