PWS Smart-Start is a behavioral caregiver training program developed specifically for caregivers of children with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) ages 3 to 14. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the acceptability and preliminary efficacy of the program. Thirty-four caregivers of children with PWS received the PWS Smart-Start training…

Background: Although lives of parents of girls with Rett syndrome (RTT) are centred on the process of care, in the current literature their perceived levels of stress have been rarely investigated. Methods: We analysed levels of stress in a sample of 79 fathers and mothers parenting girls with RTT, who were required to compile the Parenting Stress…

Purpose: This study examined relationships among family characteristics, caregiver change in use of strategies, and child growth in spoken language over the course of a parent-implemented language intervention (PILI) that was developed to address some of the challenges associated with the fragile X syndrome (FXS) phenotype. Method: Participants…

This exploratory longitudinal study examined behavioral outcomes and parenting stress among families with children adopted from foster care, taking into account environmental and biological risk factors. Child internalizing and externalizing problems and parenting stress were assessed in 82 adopted children and their families at 2 months…

Fifteen-year-old adolescents (N = 109) in a longitudinal study of child development were recruited to examine differences in DNA methylation in relation to parent reports of adversity during the adolescents' infancy and preschool periods. Microarray technology applied to 28,000 cytosine-guanine dinucleotide sites within DNA derived from buccal…

This study investigated the relationship between repetitive behaviors and sensory behavior to the parenting stress of mothers of boys with fragile X syndrome and mothers of boys with autism. Participants consisted of two groups: 51 mothers with boys diagnosed with fragile X syndrome (M = 71.3, SD = 56.5) and 30 mothers with boys diagnosed with…

There is limited evidence surrounding the ability of families of children with autism spectrum disorders to access and implement recommended interventions following diagnosis. The distress a family may encounter with regard to inability to access recommended services is also poorly understood. In this study, we present preliminary data regarding…

Background: Parenting stress was investigated in mothers with a child with Angelman syndrome (AS) or Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), which are genetically related. Method: Mothers of 24 children with AS and 23 children with PWS (2-12 years) completed the Nijmegen Parenting Stress Index-Short, Developmental Behaviour Checklist, and Vineland Screener…