Parent-Reported Severity of Autism and Parental Quality of Life: Mediating Role of Stress and Adjustment of Indian Parents
Parental adjustment; Parental stress; Parents of children with ASD; Quality of life; Severity of ASD
Parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often experience heightened emotional distress, difficulties in adjustment, and a compromised quality of life. While the severity of ASD symptoms has been consistently linked to these negative outcomes, the psychological mechanisms underlying these associations remain underexplored. The present study examines the mediating roles of parental stress and adjustment in the relationship between ASD severity and parental quality of life. A cross-sectional correlational study design was employed with 52 parents of children with ASD in Bengaluru, India. Participants completed standardised measures assessing ASD severity, parental stress, adjustment, and quality of life. Data was analysed using Pearsons correlations and mediation analysis with SmartPLS, and ethical approval was obtained prior to data collection. Findings indicate that greater parent-reportASD severity is associated with increased parental stress and adjustment difficulties, while higher stress and poorer adjustment are linked to lower QoL. Mediation analysis demonstrated that parental stress significantly mediated the relationship between ASD severity and QoL (? = ? 0.165, p =.035), whereas parental adjustment did not emerge as a significant mediator (? = ? 0.116, p =.165). The direct effect of parent-reportASD severity on QoL was non-significant (? = 0.108, p =.410). Additionally, parents reporting greater engagement in leisure activities showed higher QoL, highlighting the potential role of adaptive coping and self-care. These findings underscore parental stress as a key mechanism influencing parental well-being and suggest that interventions targeting stress management and leisure engagement may enhance QoL among parents of children with ASD. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature India Private Limited 2026.
Kodancha, Preeti; Baboo, Smitha; Rajeev, Aswin
Journal of Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Mental Health;
Restricted Access; Hardcopy may be available in the library
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40737-026-00528-9 https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105036018192?origin=resultslist
Kodancha P., Department of Psychology, CHRIST University, Bengaluru, India, Department of Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), 560029, Bengaluru, India; Baboo S., School of Education, CHRIST University, Bengaluru, India; Rajeev A., School of Psychological Sciences, CHRIST University, Bengaluru, India