What Influences Parental Burnout in Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in China? A Qualitative Study

Parental burnout is associated with decreased life satisfaction of family members, increased marital conflict, and poor prognosis of children with autism spectrum disorders. Alleviating parenting burnout in parents of children with autism spectrum disorders has become a priority for many organizations worldwide in their efforts to promote recovery and provide a basis for effective interventions for caregivers.The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of parental burnout within parents of children with autism spectrum disorder in China and the factors influencing their parental burnout. A qualitative descriptive study using semi-structured interviews was conducted. The study was conducted from November 2023 to January 2024 at multiple hospital children's rehabilitation centers in Jinan, Shandong Province, China. Purposive sampling was employed to select participants. Eleven parents of children with autism spectrum disorder in China were finally interviewed. Audio-recordings were transcribed verbatim and entered into qualitative data analysis software. Qualitative data were analyzed using a content analysis approach. The interviewees' accounts suggest that there is parenting burnout in the process of raising children with ASD, which is influenced by multiple factors. This is reflected in the five themes identified during the analysis:(1) irreversible symptoms of the disease in the child; (2) distress in terms of physical and psychological factors among parents; (3) lack of external familial, social, and economic support; (4) societal discrimination; and (5) the number of children. Parenting burnout is common among parents of children with ASD. Medical staff can adjust the variable factors by paying attention to parenting burnout. To improve the psychological resilience of parents and promote positive responses to prevent and alleviate the occurrence of parenting burnout, thus improving the quality of life and adverse outcomes of parents of children with ASD.