The Effect of Cognitive Behavioral Counseling on Parent-Child Relationship in Mothers of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Aims: Having a child with autism spectrum disorder can put a lot of stress and pressure on parents and affect their quality of life, as compared to parents of normal children. In this regard, the present study aimed to identify and determine the effectiveness of group cognitive behavioral counseling of the parents of children with autism spectrum disorder on their communication interactions with children. Participants & Methods: Population consisted of mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder in the city of Shiraz, of which ۴۰ eligible volunteers were selected using purposeful sampling method and were randomly divided into two groups of ۲۰ (control and experiment) in the academic year of ۲۰۱۸-۲۰۱۹. Data collected using the Child-Parent Relationship Scale (CPRS; Pianta). Having completed the questionnaires by the target population, the experiment group received the intervention training program of group cognitive behavioral counseling for ۱۰ one-hour sessions. However, the control group received no intervention training. Multi-variate covariance analysis and SPSS ۲۲ were used to analyze data. The significance level was considered as ۰.۰۱. Findings: The group cognitive behavioral counseling for mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder was effective on communication interaction with children and improved it (p= ۰.۰۰۱). Regarding the assessed effect, it should be noted that the degree of changes, according to eta coefficient (effect rate) was ۲۳.۳%. Conclusion: According to the findings, group cognitive behavioral intervention method can be effective on improving parenting for children with autism spectrum disorder.

کلیدواژه ها:

Cognitive Behavioral Counseling ، Autism Spectrum Disorder ، Parent-Child Interactions ، Mothers