Stress in Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: An Exploration of Demands and Resources

We applied the ABCX model of stress and coping to assess the association between child and family demands, school-based resources (i.e., parent-teacher alliance and COMPASS, a consultation intervention), and two measures of parent stress: perceptions of the demands of raising a child (Child domain) and reactions to those demands (Parent domain). Data were analyzed from seventy-nine parents of children ages 3-9 with ASD participating in two randomized controlled trials of COMPASS. Stronger parent-teacher alliance correlated with decreased Parent domain stress and participation in COMPASS correlated with decreased Child domain stress after controlling for baseline stress. The study indicates that school-based resources can help reduce parent stress.