A longitudinal examination of mental health and marital functioning of mothers and fathers of autistic adolescents during COVID-19.

LAY ABSTRACT: Parents of autistic children may be especially vulnerable to the negative effects of COVID-19. The current study examined changes in mental health and marital functioning of mothers and fathers of autistic children across three time points between April and October 2020. The study also explored whether pre-COVID factors could predict outcomes during the pandemic. Participants were 94 mothers and 58 fathers of autistic children drawn from a larger study about family relationships and autistic children's mental health that began prior to the pandemic. Results indicated that mothers reported higher levels of mental health problems compared to fathers in July and October 2020. Levels of mental health and marital functioning did not change between April and October 2020. Pre-pandemic child functioning and marital satisfaction predicted changes in mother's ratings of marital satisfaction. The findings have implications for ways to best support families during challenging periods.

Inadequate sleep moderates effects of interparental conflict appraisals on adolescent adjustment.

OBJECTIVES: Previous research and theory suggest that interparental conflict that is perceived by youth as frequent/intense, threatening, and/or the responsibility of the youth is predictive of adjustment problems. In contrast, sleep, an important precursor to emotion regulation, is likely a protective factor for youth experiencing interparental conflict. The goal of the current study was to investigate the extent to which adolescents who maintain better and/or longer sleep are buffered from the adjustment problems associated with greater interparental conflict. METHODS: One-hundred and fifty adolescents completed questionnaires assessing interparental conflict (frequency/intensity perceptions as well as threat and self-blame appraisals) as well as internalizing and externalizing behaviors. Participants also wore an actigraph over 1 week to objectively measure sleep quantity and quality; 123 participants had valid actigraphy data. RESULTS: Results of structural equation modeling analyses revealed that greater sleep quality weakened the association between interparental conflict and adjustment problems, particularly internalizing behaviors. However, sleep quantity was not a moderator. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that higher quality sleep may protect adolescents from the negative effects of interparental conflict.