Comparison of the lifestyle of parents of children with autism spectrum disorder based on the severity of the disorder with the lifestyle of parents of healthy children

Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is recognized as the most common developmental disorder and affects one in 88 people(Carter and Scherer, 2013). The presence of an autistic child in the family, for various reasons and the existence of a diverse range of language, communication and behavioral abnormalities and disorders, can impose various psychological pressures on parents and siblings (Be Pajooh 2012). The aim of this study was to compare the lifestyle of parents of children with autism spectrum disorder with emphasis on the severity of their disorder with parents of healthy children.

The statistical population of the study included all parents of children with severe, moderate and mild autism and parents of healthy children in District 5 of Tehran in 2019. From the community of parents of children with autism, 60 people (3 groups of 20 people) from the severe, moderate and mild spectrum and 20 parents of healthy children were selected by purposive sampling from those who referred to social welfare centers in the fifth district of Tehran which were investigated by Causal-comparative methods. In this study, Gilliam Autism Diagnosis Questionnaires and Miller and Smith (1992) Lifestyle Questionnaire were used to grade the severity of autism in children and the level of lifestyle respectively.

Data were analyzed by Univariate and Multivariate Analysis of Variance. Findings showed a meaningful difference between the lifestyle of parents with children with severe autism and the other two groups with the healthy group.

Therefore, it can be concluded that parents' lifestyle is affected by the severity of their children's disorder.