From Presence to Participation: Engagement with an SMS Program for Fathers of Children on the Autism Spectrum
- PDF / 700,182 Bytes
- 9 Pages / 595.276 x 790.866 pts Page_size
- 91 Downloads / 181 Views
ORIGINAL PAPER
From Presence to Participation: Engagement with an SMS Program for Fathers of Children on the Autism Spectrum Chris D. May
1
●
Jennifer M. St George1 Shelly Lane2,3 ●
1234567890();,:
1234567890();,:
Accepted: 30 September 2020 © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract Fathers of children on the autism spectrum are often in need of support due to high levels of parenting stress and the complexity associated with raising these children. While the importance of the fathering role as both parent and partner is well recognized, the recruitment of fathers into support programs is often resource intensive and generally fails to achieve desired levels of enrollment and retention. Text2dads explored paternal engagement with a program providing text-based information and support to smartphones of Australian fathers (N = 184) raising children on the autism spectrum. The evaluation is scaffolded by Piotrowska et al.’s CAPE model of engagement—Connection, Attendance, Participation and Enactment. Analysis demonstrated high rates of connection and participation when compared to other father-focused interventions. Evidence from response rates, comments and surveys demonstrate that fathers actively participated in the project while also reporting that they applied information gained from Text2dads in their parenting behavior. Advances in mobile communication have created opportunities to engage with fathers using alternative modes of intervention. The present study demonstrates support for the acceptability of this cost effective and highly scalable program. Keywords Father Autism, Engagement, Intervention, Co-parenting SMS Text-messaging ●
The parenting of a child on the autism spectrum (AS) can be a transformative and highly rewarding experience (Piotrowska et al.’s (2017)). However, fathers and mothers of children on the AS often experience high and similar levels of parenting stress (McStay et al. 2014; May et al. 2015; Pakenham et al. 2004). While mothers and fathers both play important roles in the parenting of children on the AS, mothers often take on a more intensive primary parenting role. As such, mothers are usually more engaged with the providers of education, support and services (Gray 2006; May et al. 2017). This does not mean that the roles and responsibilities of fathers are diminished; they continue to provide for their families, parent their children, and in most families deliver the mothers’ most important source of
* Chris D. May [email protected] 1
Family Action Centre, University of Newcastle, University Drive, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
2
University of Newcastle, University Drive, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia
3
Present address: Colorado State University, Denver, CO, USA
●
●
parenting support (Brobst et al. 2009). Nonetheless, as in families of typically developing children and those with other intellectual disability, fathers of children on the AS often share weak relationships with service providers and are much less likely t
Data Loading...
