Comunicative handicaps perceived by parents of autistic spectrum syndrome: a questionnaire

Abstract

Introduction: language deficits are the main characteristics of autistic spectrum disorders. However, work that describes the close relationship between the language deficits presented by this population and the communicative difficulties experienced by parents is not found in the national literature. Although the major difficulties described by parents are all related to the characteristics that constitute the autistic spectrum disorders, quantification of these characteristics and identification of the period and way in which they occur is necessary. Aim: the overall purpose of the present study is to identify the difficulties of parents of children of the autistic spectrum regarding communication with their children. Specific goals involve identification of the most frequent difficulties during communication pointed by parents; verification of the perception of parents about the family receptiveness to their autistic children; verification of a possible correlation between the difficulties experienced by parents in communication and the perception of acceptance by the extended family. Method: participants of this study will be the parents and/or caretakers of children of the Autistic Spectrum, who have been diagnosed by psychiatrists or neurologists according to the criteria established in the DSM-IV or ICD-10, between the ages of 3 and 12 years, and who are being attended at the Investigation Speech-Language Laboratory of Childhood Psychiatric Disorders, of the Speech-Language and Hearing Course of the School of Medicine of the University of São Paulo. One hundred questionnaires will be analyzed. The inclusion criteria adopted for the children will be: medical diagnosis within the autistic spectrum, informed consent obtained from parents/caretakers, enrollment in speech-language therapy. Aspects of gender, literacy, verbal or non-verbal communication were not considered excluding. The elaborated questionnaire will be based on the study developed by two German authors, Macharey and von Suchodoletz (2008), about the perception and stigmatization of children with language disorders and their parents. The questionnaire will also be based on a few directions proposed by Sudman and Bradburn (1982). The questionnaire will have four alternatives: agree, completely agree, disagree and completely disagree. The researcher will make contact with the parents in order to invite them to answer the questionnaire and begin the data gathering procedures. Data analyses: data will be analyzed in terms of the most frequent and repeated difficulties, literacy of parents and position the child occupies in the family. The statistical analysis will use all of the necessary instruments to stablish the significance of the obtained results.