Charting a new path forward - Maternal cognitive adaptation to child’s autism diagnosis in relation to their psychological functioning

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dc.abstract.enChild’s autism diagnosis is a significant and often challenging event for the parents, requiring psychological adjustment and adaptation. We explored how various patterns of thinking that emerge in response to a child's diagnosis, relate to parental mental health and well-being. We developed and validated the Maternal Cognitive Adaptation to Child's Autism Diagnosis (MCACAD) scale in a sample of 443 mothers of children aged 2–18 years. We identified five distinct cognitive adaptation mechanisms: Belief in Recovery, Comparisons, Belief in Family Growth, Belief in Personal Growth, and Denial of Diagnosis. Factor analysis revealed good psychometric properties, with the five-factor structure explaining 59.63 % of total variance. Results showed that meaning-focused adaptations (Belief in Personal and Family Growth) were associated with better mental health outcomes, while Social Comparisons predicted poorer outcomes. Denial of Diagnosis was associated with increased anxiety, but also was inversely associated with time since diagnosis, suggesting it may act as a shield against initial change-related uncertainty. We have also found that Caregiver burden was the strongest predictor of psychological functioning across all measures. These findings suggest that understanding maternal cognitive adaptations may help identify parents needing additional support and inform interventions promoting adaptive coping strategies following child’s autism diagnosis.
dc.affiliationInstytut Psychologii
dc.affiliationWydział Psychologii we Wrocławiu
dc.contributor.authorKról, Magdalena
dc.contributor.authorTokarek, Agata
dc.contributor.authorGamian-Wilk, Małgorzata
dc.contributor.authorJopek-Kurek, Grażyna
dc.contributor.authorMoffitt, Paulina
dc.contributor.authorFerenc, Kinga
dc.date.access2028-02-24
dc.date.accessioned2026-03-04T11:48:54Z
dc.date.available2026-03-04T11:48:54Z
dc.date.created2026-02-18
dc.date.issued2026-02-24
dc.description.accesstimeafter_publication
dc.description.grantnumber1302-11
dc.description.granttitleSytuacja rodziców dzieci ze spektrum autyzmu - związek wykluczenia społecznego i adaptacyjnych przekonań z dobrostanem psychicznym
dc.description.physical1-10
dc.description.sdgGoodHealthAndWellBeing
dc.description.versionfinal_author
dc.description.volume132
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.reia.2026.202869
dc.identifier.issn3050-6565
dc.identifier.urihttps://share.swps.edu.pl/handle/swps/2205
dc.identifier.weblinkhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S3050656526000830?via%3Dihub
dc.languageen
dc.pbn.affiliationpsychologia
dc.rightsCC-BY-NC-ND
dc.rights.questionYes_rights
dc.share.articleOPEN_REPOSITORY
dc.subject.enAutism spectrum disorder
dc.subject.enMaternal adaptation
dc.subject.enCognitive coping mechanisms
dc.subject.enPsychological wellbeing
dc.subject.enCaregiver burden
dc.swps.sciencecloudsend
dc.titleCharting a new path forward - Maternal cognitive adaptation to child’s autism diagnosis in relation to their psychological functioning
dc.title.journalResearch in Autism
dc.typeJournalArticle
dspace.entity.typeArticle