Reactions, Challenges and Coping Mechanisms of Mothers Raising Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): the Case of Addis Ababa City
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Date
2016-02
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Autism Spectrum Disorder is a complex neurological disorder which causes impairments in
multiple areas of development including social interaction, communication, and behavior. There
is clear evidence that parents of children with autism face many challenges in dealing with their
children‟s difficult behaviors that can lead to negative psychological outcomes, including
exhaustion, stress and depression. Moreover, it is evident that parents encounter social
challenges such as problems on family relationship and lack of understanding attached to the
disorder by society that lead to discrimination not only of the autistic child but also of the family
as a whole. However, despite the many challenges parents of children with autism usually
identify coping strategies that will work for them. This study therefore aims to explore the lived
experiences of mothers raising children diagnosed with autism on the psychological and social
challenges they faced as well as coping mechanisms they found effective in dealing with those
challenges. A qualitative phenomenological research design guided the data collection and
analysis which included six deep interviews that were recorded. The results that were
conceptualized under the four research questions containing fourteen themes indicate that raising
a child with autism is characterized by many psychological and social challenges such as
mothers lack of information and support during the time of diagnosis, worry about child‟s future,
stress from managing a child with autism, not having a time for oneself, effect on family,
difficulty finding education and treatment for their children and lack of understanding followed
by negative comments from the society
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Addis Ababa City