Graduation Term

2016

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Department of Psychology

Committee Chair

Corinne Zimmerman

Abstract

Previous research has identified many interventions for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Some of these interventions are evidence-based; others are not. However, previous research has also found that parents select interventions for their children with ASD on the basis of several factors other than the evidence base, including their emotional representations of ASD and their perceptions of the timeline, consequences, and causes of ASD. Other research has found that people’s cultural worldviews influence their decision-making on a variety of social and political issues. The current study examined the relationships between these factors and parents’ perceptions of the efficacy of evidence-based and non-evidence-based interventions. Contrary to previous research, for parents of children with ASD, perceptions of intervention efficacy were not affected by their emotional representations of ASD or their perceptions of the timeline or consequences of ASD. There was a relationship between parents’ perceptions of the causes of ASD and their perceptions of the efficacy of some interventions. Parents’ cultural worldview was not related to their perceptions of the efficacy of evidence-based interventions, but was related to their perceptions of non-evidence-based interventions. Further research is needed to determine other factors that influence how parents perceive ASD interventions.

Access Type

Thesis-Open Access

DOI

http://doi.org/10.30707/ETD2016.Reiher.J

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Psychology Commons

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