Date of Award

December 2014

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Department

Communication Sciences and Disorders

First Advisor

Paula Rhyner

Committee Members

John Heilmann, Kris Barnekow

Keywords

Autism Spectrum Disorder, Evidence Based Practice, Parent Education, Parent Experiences, Expectations and Level Satisfaction, Speech Language Pathologist

Abstract

EXPLORING EXPERIENCES, EXPECTATIONS AND PERCEPTIONS OF

PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH ASD IN RECEIVING PARENT EDUCATION

FROM SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGISTS

by

Vinaya Kulkarni

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2014

Under the Supervision of Professor Paula Rhyner, Ph.D.

As the prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) rises, an increasing number of

parents are faced with questions related to diagnosis and intervention for their child with

ASD. The purpose of the present study was to examine parental experiences,

expectations, and level of satisfaction regarding parent education received on ASD from

practicing speech-language pathologists (SLPs). A 36-question online survey: Parent

Education in Autism Spectrum Disorder: Experiences, Expectations, and Perception was

created to collect data regarding parental experiences, expectations, and level of

satisfaction pertaining to information provided by SLPs in the following areas: (a) the

nature of ASD, (b) specific treatment approach(es) used with their child with ASD by the

practicing SLP; and (c) evidence based practice in ASD. Participants were parents of

children with ASD who responded to a recruitment flyer and the informed consent

posted on the Facebook pages of the parent support organizations Autism Speaks

Milwaukee and the Autism Society of Southeastern Wisconsin. A total of 23 respondents

met the inclusion criteria and completed the online survey via the Survey Monkey

website. For each question, the percentage of responses for each response choice for each question was calculated. Data analyses revealed a high percentage (84.2%) of the

respondents reported receiving information about specific treatment approaches used

with their child. Information about common facts about ASD (e.g., causes, symptoms,

and prognosis) was not received by 47.4% of the respondents and information about

evidence-based practice related to ASD was not received by 63.2% of the respondents.

The majority of respondents (62.5%) indicated the information received was partially

understood and 68.5% of the respondents indicated that the information provided only

partially met parental expectations. Respondents expressed the need for weekly

communication from their child's SLP about their child's progress in therapy. Overall,

the findings suggest that to further improve education for parents of children with ASD,

education regarding common facts about ASD and about evidence-based practice needs

to be emphasized. The findings also illustrate the need for additional research on the

effectiveness of parent education for children with ASD.

Download

Share

COinS