The Correlation between Autism Severity in Parents Having Autistic Children and Their Children’s Morbid Symptoms

Abstract

The current research was conducted by the aim of studying the correlation between autism severity in parents having autistic children and their children’s morbid symptoms. This research is a correlative study. The population includes all of the parents having 4-11 year old children suffering from autism who visit ZehneZiba clinic and Tehran Autism Society in 2013. By the use of available sampling 200 parents were chosen as the sample. Child symptom inventory-4 (CSI-4) and Autism spectrum Quotient were the tools used in this research. Results of multivariate regression showed that parents having children suffering from autism achieve high scores in autistic traits and a significant correlation exists between the autism severity in parents and the autism disorder in child. Also a significant correlation was found between the autism severity of parents and autistic children’s morbid symptoms in disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), behavioral disorder, tic, obsession, schizophrenia, incontinence of urine and feces, social phobia, and anxiety disorder. Yet no correlation existed between the autism severity of parents and disorders such as depression, separation anxiety, and coping behavior disorder. These findings provide some evidences about problems and weaknesses of parents having autistic children in autistic traits and the correlation of these defects with the mental health of children suffering from autism.