The broad autism phenotype and its relation to parental reflective functioning in mothers of children with autism spectrum disorders
| dc.contributor.author | Henrikson, Brenna | |
| dc.contributor.examiningcommittee | Hiebert-Murphy, Diane (Psychology) | |
| dc.contributor.examiningcommittee | Stoesz, Brenda (Psychology) | |
| dc.contributor.examiningcommittee | Malik, Sayma (Clinical Health Psychology) | |
| dc.contributor.examiningcommittee | McCrimmon, Adam (Werklund School of Education, University of Calgary) | |
| dc.contributor.supervisor | Theule, Jennifer | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2023-09-07T20:27:36Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2023-09-07T20:27:36Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2023-07-06 | |
| dc.date.submitted | 2023-08-24T04:41:04Z | en_US |
| dc.degree.discipline | Psychology | en_US |
| dc.degree.level | Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) | |
| dc.description.abstract | Attachment theory posits that a strong attachment between parent and child is necessary for the child to grow and develop emotionally. Parental reflective functioning (PRF), the way that a parent is able to reflect on their own and their child’s internal mental states, is an underlying factor to fostering children’s own reflective functioning abilities and, in turn, the parent-child attachment relationship. Individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have impairments in reflective functioning abilities. As genetic factors contribute to ASD, parents of children with ASD may have higher levels of the Broad Autism Phenotype (the BAP), which refers to nonclinically significant symptoms of ASD. Examining levels of PRF in parents of children with ASD, and the impact of level of the BAP on level of PRF, is important, as this will allow for a better understanding of how these variables interact with each other and impact the parent-child relationship within these populations. Further, examining the relationship between level of PRF and level of parenting stress, along with the mediating role that externalizing behaviours play in this relationship, is important in order to allow us to further understand how PRF interacts with these variables that are often present within families of children with ASD. Broadly, the current study sought to examine PRF in mothers of children with ASD, along with the relationship that the PRF has with the BAP, parenting stress, and child externalizing behaviour problems. The current study examined 105 mothers of children with ASD and 100 mothers of children without ASD. ANCOVAs revealed that mothers of children with ASD had significantly lower levels of PRF than the comparison group, while a significant negative relationship existed between levels of the BAP in parents of children with ASD and PRF; more specifically, between ASD and prementalizing. An ANCOVA also revealed that mothers of children with ASD experienced significantly higher levels of parenting stress than the comparison group, and level of child externalizing behaviour mediated the relationship between level of PRF in parents of children with ASD and parenting stress. | |
| dc.description.note | October 2023 | |
| dc.description.sponsorship | Susan Wright Bell Award, Study of Developmental Disabilities, University of Manitoba, Department of Family Medicine | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/1993/37614 | |
| dc.language.iso | eng | |
| dc.rights | open access | en_US |
| dc.subject | autism spectrum disorders | |
| dc.subject | parental reflective functioning | |
| dc.subject | externalizing behaviour problems | |
| dc.subject | parenting stress | |
| dc.subject | parent-child relationship | |
| dc.title | The broad autism phenotype and its relation to parental reflective functioning in mothers of children with autism spectrum disorders | |
| dc.type | doctoral thesis | en_US |
| local.subject.manitoba | yes | |
| oaire.awardTitle | University of Manitoba Graduate Fellowship | |
| oaire.awardURI | http://webapps.cc.umanitoba.ca/gradawards/index.asp?WCI=SearchForm&WCE=browse&keywords=&criteria=any&category=0&citizen=0&range=0-1000000&tenable=0&byResearch=on&byAward=on&byEligibility=on&id=2698&letter=U | |
| project.funder.identifier | https://doi.org/10.13039/100010318 | |
| project.funder.name | University of Manitoba |