Life Stories of Parents with Autistic Children

Abstract

The major aim of this study was to determine how children diagnosed with autism shapes their parents’ lives by specifying parents’ life stories. The study group consisted of 10 parents who have children with autism. Parents who have participated in the study were determined through a preliminary interview prior to the study and in-depth interviews were conducted with volunteer parents. In the study, "Life Story Interview" list was implemented to examine the content of life stories that shape parents’ lives. The data obtained from the research were analyzed using data analysis phases of interpretative phenomenology which is one of the qualitative research models. By analyzing the data obtained in the research, 10 major themes emerged. These major themes include; diagnosis, feeling, hopes and plans, concerns and questions, social reactions / stigmatization, parenting roles, coping with, sensitivity to disease, meaning of life and development. Analyses revealed that parents with autistic children undergo through a wide variety of emotions, challenges and difficulties during their daily lives and also that good coping skill is the key to normal functioning within the family which had an autistic child.