Parenting a Child with ASD: Comparison of Parenting Style Between ASD, Anxiety, and Typical Development.

The study measured everything at one time, so it cannot show whether parenting style affects child symptoms or child symptoms affect parenting style. Parenting style, child symptoms, and parent symptoms were all reported by the same parent, so the results may reflect one parent's view rather than observed behaviour. The ASD group was younger than the anxiety group, and age was controlled, but this age difference may still make groups less comparable. The study did not measure children's cognitive ability, so the associations may differ for children with higher and lower IQ. The study did not separate mothers and fathers, so parent gender differences were not examined. The typically developing group was smaller than the clinical groups, with 26 children. Participants were recruited from one university community and developmental disabilities clinic, so findings may not generalise to other settings. Important family factors such as socioeconomic status, marital status, social support, culture, race, and ethnicity were not measured.

The authors declared no conflict of interest. The paper does not state funding.

Do not conclude that parenting style causes ASD or anxiety, or that parents of children with ASD parent differently from parents of typically developing children. The study was cross-sectional and relied on parent reports, and it found no group difference in psychological control and no difference between ASD and typical development in acceptance or firm control.