The Comparison of Coping Strategies and Hardiness of Mothers of Autistic Children and Mothers of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

This study aimed to compare the coping strategies and hardiness in mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and mothers of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in Isfahan, Iran.

In this study, we used the causal-comparative research method. The statistical population consisted of mothers of children with autism covered by Autism Society of Isfahan and mothers of children with ADHD who referred to the counseling clinics of Isfahan. Finally, 73 and 64 mothers from each group were respectively selected based on convenience sampling. The research tools were Coping Health Inventory for Parents (CHIP) and Family Hardiness Index (FHI), which were studied and answered by mothers. Data were analyzed by SPSS software.

Based on the analysis of variance results, there was a significant difference between coping strategies used by the mothers of children with autism and mothers of ADHD group (P = 0.009, F = 6.956). Meanwhile, no significant differences between the hardiness of the two samples were observed (P = 0.069, F = 3.381).

Since effective coping strategies increase the level of resilience, hardiness, and wellbeing of mothers and their families, therapists and specialists must necessarily pay more attention to coping patterns and strategies of mothers and design the most effective and appropriate intervention program based on their demographical and personality characteristics.