The Association between Depression and Perceived Stress among Parents of Autistic and Non-Autistic Children—The Role of Loneliness

Kasper Sipowicz, Tadeusz Pietras, Marlena Podlecka and Łukasz Mokros
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Kasper Sipowicz: Department of Interdisciplinary Disability Studies, The Maria Grzegorzewska University in Warsaw, Szczesliwicka 40, 02-353 Warsaw, Poland
Tadeusz Pietras: Second Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology in Warsaw, Sobieskiego 9, 02-957 Warsaw, Poland
Marlena Podlecka: Department of Neuroses, Personality Disorders and Eating Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology in Warsaw, Sobieskiego 9, 02-957 Warsaw, Poland
Łukasz Mokros: Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Medical University of Lodz, Kopcinskiego 22, 90-153 Lodz, Poland

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 5, 1-9

Abstract: Having an autistic child significantly impairs the functioning of the family, including the wellbeing of the parents. The aim of this study was to assess whether loneliness mediates the relationship between perceived stress and the severity of depressive symptoms in the studied sample of parents. This cross-sectional study involved 39 parents of autistic children and 45 parents of non-autistic children. They completed a set of tests: a survey on sociodemographic and clinical data and psychometric questionnaires, i.e., Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI), De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale (DJGLS), and Perceived Stress Questionnaire (KPS). A rise in external and intrapsychic stress, independently, was linked to a rise in the severity of depressive symptoms. The severity of depression, loneliness and stress was higher among parents of autistic children compared with parents of non-autistic children. Intrapsychic stress exhibited an indirect effect through loneliness on the worsening of depressive symptoms.

Keywords: depression; mood disorders; broad autism phenotype; social support (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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