Relationship between Comorbid Psychopathology in Children and Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Parental Well-being.

AIM: Frequency and relationship between child comorbid psychopathology and parental stress, quality of life (QoL), anxiety, depression, and social support were examined in parents of children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

METHOD: Parents of 152 children and adolescents with ASD completed the Autism Spectrum Disorder-Comorbid for Children, Parenting Stress Index-Short Form, World Health Organization Quality of Life Abbreviated Version, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support.

RESULTS

A series of one-way multivariate analysis of variance was conducted to examine the relationship between child comorbid psychopathology and parental well-being. A relationship was found between parental QoL, depression and anxiety and child comorbid psychopathology. Results showed a relationship between parental stress and the severity of child conduct, and repetitive behaviors.

CONCLUSION

This study adds to existing literature by demonstrating the relationship between comorbid psychopathology in children and adolescents in ASD and parental well-being.