ABSTRACT
Little is known about the perceptions of sibling relationships from the direct perspective of service users with mental health difficulties; this study aimed to address this gap. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with adult male inpatients who had severe and enduring mental health difficulties. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to analyse the data and revealed three main themes: (1) The closeness of the sibling bond; (2) The change in sibling dynamics following diagnosis and admission; (3) Siblings' contribution to mental health and recovery. The implications of involving siblings in care and the benefits of service user led research are discussed.
Subject(s)
Mental Disorders/psychology , Mental Health Services , Sibling Relations , Siblings/psychology , Adolescent , Adult , Female , Humans , Inpatients/psychology , Male , Middle Aged , Qualitative Research , United Kingdom , Young AdultABSTRACT
Debate is ongoing about whether typically developing siblings of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at greater risk of behavioral or emotional problems than siblings of children without ASD. Most data on behavior is provided by mothers, and we do not know whether fathers' reports differ. The strengths and difficulties questionnaire (Goodman in J Child Psychol Psychiatry 38(5):581-586, 1997) was completed by 168 mothers and 130 fathers. Parents were more likely to rate siblings as having 'abnormal' behavior when compared to a normative population. We found moderate correlations between mother-father ratings. More research may be needed to understand any clinical benefits of gathering data about sibling adjustment from more than one parent in the family. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed.
Subject(s)
Child Development Disorders, Pervasive/psychology , Emotions , Fathers/psychology , Mothers/psychology , Siblings/psychology , Adaptation, Psychological , Adolescent , Adult , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Male , Middle AgedABSTRACT
Parenting a child with autism may differentially affect mothers and fathers. Existing studies of mother-father differences often ignore the interdependence of data within families. We investigated gender differences within-families using multilevel linear modeling. Mothers and fathers of children with autism (161 couples) reported on their own well-being, and their child's functioning. Mothers reported higher levels of distress compared with fathers, and child behavior problems predicted psychological distress for both mothers and fathers. We found little evidence of child functioning variables affecting mothers and fathers differently. Gender differences in the impact of child autism on parents appear to be robust. More family systems research is required to fully understand these gender differences and the implications for family support.
Subject(s)
Child Development Disorders, Pervasive/psychology , Parenting/psychology , Parents/psychology , Sex Characteristics , Stress, Psychological/psychology , Adult , Child , Child Behavior Disorders/psychology , Female , Humans , Male , Middle AgedABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: There is a dearth of research on the perspectives of adolescent siblings growing up with a brother or sister with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). METHOD: Semistructured interviews were used to elicit the perceptions and experiences of 12 typically developing adolescents with a brother with an ASD. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used. RESULTS: The data analysis of the siblings' perceptions yielded 6 themes: (a) difficulties and negative impact of their brother's condition on themselves and their family, (b) how others' reactions to their brother negatively affected them as siblings, (c) how their histories with their brothers contextualised their present circumstances, (d) the varying degrees of acceptance and tolerance towards their brothers, (e) positive perceptions and experiences with their brothers, and (f) their thoughts and worries about the future. CONCLUSIONS: The main implications are for supports to adolescent siblings by helping them to develop skills in managing others' reactions and openly discussing concerns about their brother's future.
Subject(s)
Adaptation, Psychological , Child Development Disorders, Pervasive/psychology , Quality of Life/psychology , Sibling Relations , Siblings/psychology , Adolescent , Child , Child, Preschool , Female , Humans , Interviews as Topic , Male , Perception , Qualitative Research , Surveys and Questionnaires , United KingdomABSTRACT
Siblings of children with autism may be at greater risk for psychological problems than siblings of children with another disability or of typically developing (TD) children. However, it is difficult to establish whether autism or the presence of intellectual disability (ID) explains the findings in previous research. Mothers rated the emotional and behavioural adjustment of siblings of children with ID with (N = 25) or without (N = 24) autism. Data were also available 18 months later for siblings of children with autism and ID (N = 15). Siblings of children with autism and ID had more emotional problems compared with siblings of children with ID only and with normative data. Three variables were pertinent: increasing age of the child with autism, having a brother with autism, and being younger than the child with autism. Behavioural and emotional difficulties of siblings of children with autism and ID were relatively stable over 18 months.
