From Research Settings to Parents: The Role of Parent Social Networks in the Choices Parents Make About Services for Their Child With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Despite research that has documented the types of services that are being used by parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), researchers have yet to determine how intervention-related knowledge spreads to parents. In the current study, we sought to clarify the impact of parent social networks on intervention use in 244 parents of a child with ASD by examining the following: (a) Do social-network variables predict the use of evidence-based practices (EBPs) or non-EBPs? (b) Do social-network variables predict parent satisfaction with service use? and (c) Who are the referral sources of EBPs and non-EBPs? Results indicated that social-network variables predict parents' EBP use and non-EBP use beyond income, education, and child ASD symptom severity. In addition, recommendations to EBPs and non-EBPs came from distinct referral sources. The results have implications for both the active provision of basic social-network support and psychoeducation at the onset of ASD diagnosis and the use of social networks to more effectively disseminate best-practice information on a larger scale.