Family Involvement During Comprehensive Developmental Evaluations: Perspectives of Diverse Mothers.
Ariel O Blakey, Jenna Sandler Eilenberg, Nicole Cardona and 4 others
PMID 39108071WHAT IT FOUND
Mothers of children with false-positive autism screens relied on family for decision-making, logistics, and emotional support.
Grandmothers often voiced early concerns, while partners provided logistical ease. Family input sometimes delayed care or increased worry, highlighting the need for providers to validate maternal stress and assess family dynamics.
Key findings
01Mothers frequently sought family input when deciding to pursue developmental evaluations, with grandmothers often being the first to voice concerns about the child's development.
02Family involvement helped overcome logistical barriers such as transportation and childcare, though partnered mothers relied more on partners while non-partnered mothers relied on extended family.
03Family members sometimes discouraged mothers from seeking professional opinions or provided input that contradicted medical recommendations, which exacerbated mothers' worry and feelings of isolation.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study focused exclusively on mothers, excluding perspectives from fathers or other caregivers. Participants were recruited from major metropolitan areas and spoke only English or Spanish, limiting generalizability to rural or other linguistic backgrounds. Interviews occurred 5 to 45 months after the evaluation, introducing potential recall bias. Over half the sample had received family navigation services, which may not reflect the resources available to most families.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was supported by the National Institute of Health (N.I.H.).
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that family involvement is uniformly beneficial. The study found that family members sometimes actively discouraged mothers from seeking professional help or provided contradictory advice that increased stress. Clinicians should assess whether a family's involvement is facilitating or hindering the evaluation process.