Mathew NE, Burton KLO, Schierbeek A, Črnčec R, Walter A, Eapen V. Parenting preschoolers with autism: Socioeconomic influences on wellbeing and sense of competence. World J Psychiatr 2019; 9(2): 30-46 [PMID: 30915270 DOI: 10.5498/wjp.v9.i2.30]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Valsamma Eapen, PhD, Professor, MBBS, FRCPsych, Academic Unit of Child Psychiatry South West Sydney and Ingham Institute, South West Sydney Local Health District, Liverpool Hospital, ICAMHS, Mental Health Centre (Level L1), Locked Bag 7103, Elizabeth Street, Liverpool NSW 2170, Australia. v.eapen@unsw.edu.au
Research Domain of This Article
Psychiatry
Article-Type of This Article
Observational Study
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Mathew NE, Burton KLO, Schierbeek A, Črnčec R, Walter A, Eapen V. Parenting preschoolers with autism: Socioeconomic influences on wellbeing and sense of competence. World J Psychiatr 2019; 9(2): 30-46 [PMID: 30915270 DOI: 10.5498/wjp.v9.i2.30]
World J Psychiatr. Mar 27, 2019; 9(2): 30-46 Published online Mar 27, 2019. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v9.i2.30
Parenting preschoolers with autism: Socioeconomic influences on wellbeing and sense of competence
Nisha E Mathew, Karen L O Burton, Anne Schierbeek, Rudi Črnčec, Amelia Walter, Valsamma Eapen
Nisha E Mathew, Karen L O Burton, Rudi Črnčec, Amelia Walter, Valsamma Eapen, School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney NSW 2052, Australia
Anne Schierbeek, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan, Amsterdam 1081 HV, The Netherlands
Amelia Walter, Valsamma Eapen, Academic Unit of Child Psychiatry South West Sydney and Ingham Institute, South West Sydney Local Health District, Liverpool Hospital, ICAMHS, Mental Health Centre (Level L1), Locked Bag 7103, Liverpool NSW 1871, Australia
Author contributions: Mathew NE, Burton KLO, Schierbeek A, Črnčec R, Walter A, Eapen V contributed to this paper.
Institutional review board statement: The collection of information for this study was approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
Informed consent statement: Families provided informed consent for any information collected as part of a broader study of an early intervention program for Autism Spectrum Disorders to be discussed and published provided that all information included in any publication is anonymised such that they cannot be personally identified.
Conflict-of-interest statement: None.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement-checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement-checklist of items.
Corresponding author: Valsamma Eapen, PhD, Professor, MBBS, FRCPsych, Academic Unit of Child Psychiatry South West Sydney and Ingham Institute, South West Sydney Local Health District, Liverpool Hospital, ICAMHS, Mental Health Centre (Level L1), Locked Bag 7103, Elizabeth Street, Liverpool NSW 2170, Australia. v.eapen@unsw.edu.au
Telephone: +61-2-96164205 Fax: +61-2-96012773
Received: May 29, 2018 Peer-review started: May 29, 2018 First decision: July 9, 2018 Revised: February 5, 2019 Accepted: February 18, 2019 Article in press: February 19, 2019 Published online: March 27, 2019 Processing time: 289 Days and 23.9 Hours
Core Tip
Core tip: Previous research suggests that parents raising a child with autism experience comparatively higher levels of psychological distress than other parents. Little is known, however, about how socioeconomic status (SES) affects perceived parenting competence and overall wellbeing and how these factors relate to the nature of children’s autism. In this study, a cross-sectional analysis of parents of preschoolers with autism found that mothers and fathers were differentially affected by SES and their children’s symptom severity. Those working with parents of pre-schoolers with autism need to consider differential effects of factors, such as SES and symptom severity, in contributing to maternal and paternal wellbeing and their experiences of parenting.
