Associations Between Caregiver Depression and Social Support Among Diverse Caregivers of Children with Developmental Delay and Autism
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Date
2024-01-09
Authors
Taiwo, Abiola
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Oregon
Abstract
Caregivers of children with developmental delay (DD) or disabilities are at a higher risk of developing mental health problems like depression when compared to caregivers of children who are typically developing. Several factors, including child diagnosis and child challenging behavior, have been known to exacerbate caregiver risk for mental health problems. Social support has been investigated as a way to cope with caregiver depression, but limited research has examined these associations in the DD population, particularly among diverse caregivers. This exploratory study sought to provide information about the association between types of social support and caregiver depression in a sample of 175 ethnically and linguistically diverse caregivers who have children with DD or autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The following research questions were addressed: (1) Which types of social support (family, informal, formal) are viewed as helpful to caregivers of young children with DD/ASD? (2) Does utilization of social support vary by ethnicity (Latinx, non-Latinx)? (3) Which types of social support (family, informal, formal) are associated with caregiver depression? (4) Is the association between social support and caregiver depression moderated by child challenging behavior, child diagnosis (ASD vs DD), or ethnicity (Latinx vs. non-Latinx)? (5) After accounting for
family sociodemographic variables (i.e., income, caregiver education, and ethnicity) is social support associated with caregiver depression?
Study results for the first research question demonstrated that caregivers rated formal support as most helpful, and informal support as less helpful. The second research question indicated that caregivers’ ratings of the utilization of support did not vary by ethnicity. Results for research question 3 revealed that 1) total and family based supports were associated with caregiver depression and 2) neither formal nor informal supports were associated with caregiver depression. The fourth research question showed that the relation between social support and caregiver depression was not moderated by child challenging behavior, child diagnosis, or caregiver ethnicity. The fifth research question indicated that after controlling for caregiver income, education, and ethnicity, social support explained unique variance in caregiver depression scores. The results of this study have implications for professionals and clinicians, particularly when working with Latinx families during the early childhood period, as well as implications for effectively and efficiently accessing interventions aimed at improving access to support, and caregiver depression when parenting children with developmental delays and disabilities.
Description
Keywords
Autism, Developmental Delay, Latinx, Mental health, Mental health, Social support