RESEARCH OF HARDINESS OF MOTHER’S, RAISING CHILDREN WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS

Abstract

The article discusses the results of two studies aimed at studying the resilience and other personality
traits of mothers raising children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The first was a comparison of the
hardiness of mothers raising children with ASD and mothers raising children with developmental disabilities
in a total sample of 36 subjects. Were used: modified Muddy's hardiness test; questionnaire "Style of selfregulation of behavior – 98"; questionnaire “Coping with stress” by K. Carver, M. Scheyer, J. Weintraub; fivefactor personality questionnaire "Big Five" R. McCrae and P. Costa. Correlation analysis revealed the relationship between the components of hardiness and coping behavior in mothers raising children with
ASD. In this group, a direct correlation was found between such a component of hardiness as “risk taking” and the coping behavior strategy “positive reformulation and personal growth”, they accept the situation and thus try to rethink it in a positive way. The second study involved 14 mothers raising children with ASD, were used: Eysenck's test (EPI), the Dembo-Rubinstein personality self-assessment method (modified by A.M. Prikhozhan) and the author's questionnaire. At the same time, 36% of mothers had an average level of extraversion, so the notion that parents raising children with ASD are more closed and introverted was not confirmed in our study. Mothers, in general, quite adequately assess their condition and personal qualities, as well as the health of their children, however, they are worried about the situation of the child's relationship with peers. In general, the work showed that it is necessary to develop adaptive mechanisms in families raising children with ASD.