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Use and Benefit of Dyadic Coping for Couple Relationship Satisfaction in Parents of Children with Autism
Author(s) -
Putney Jennifer M.,
Greenlee Jessica L.,
Hartley Sigan L.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
family process
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.011
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1545-5300
pISSN - 0014-7370
DOI - 10.1111/famp.12617
Subject(s) - psychology , coping (psychology) , autism spectrum disorder , stressor , developmental psychology , clinical psychology , association (psychology) , autism , psychotherapist
Parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at increased risk for unsatisfying and conflict‐ridden couple relationships (i.e., marital or romantic partner relationships). There is a critical need to identify the couple‐level processes that contribute to this risk. The current study examined the use of dyadic coping, defined as the appraisals and behaviors that partners in relationships use and receive to manage stressors, and to examine whether dyadic coping mediated the association between parenting stress and couple relationship satisfaction in parents who have a child with ASD and in parents who do not have a child with ASD. In total, 184 couples that had a child with ASD (aged 5–12 years) and comparison group of 183 couples who have a child without a neurodevelopmental condition participated in the study. A multivariate analysis of covariance indicated that parents of children with ASD reported less positive and more negative dyadic coping than did parents in the comparison group. Hierarchical linear modeling indicated that dyadic coping mediated the association between parenting stress and couple relationship satisfaction. Findings have important implications for programs aimed at enhancing parent couple relationship in families of children with ASD.