Children with autism experience challenges with emotion regulation. It is unclear how children's management of their emotions is associated with their family's quality of life. Forty-three preschoolers with autism and 28 typically developing preschoolers were coded on emotion regulation strategies used during low-level stress tasks. Parents…

Background: Research examining the quality of life (QoL) of children with severe developmental disabilities (SDD) is limited. The present study examines parent perceptions of child QoL in children with SDD compared with typically developing (TD) children and then examines predictors of QoL for the SDD group. Method: Parents of 246 children with…

Background: People with intellectual disabilities are vulnerable to develop psychopathology (in particular anxiety) and related challenging behaviour. Method: A comparative multiple case study with an experimental and a control condition. Results: The application of the guideline showed a trend of decreases of internalizing problems (P = 0.07) and…

The present study aimed to investigate identity styles, quality of life and behavioral difficulties between adolescents with single and two-parent status. In this causal- comparative study, a total of 214 high school students were selected, then 112 single parent students (59 females and 53 males) were selected by the voluntary response sampling…

Sleep disorders often co-occur with autism spectrum disorder. They further exacerbate autism spectrum disorder symptoms and interfere with children's and parental quality of life. This study examines whether gastrointestinal dysfunctions increase the odds of having sleep disorders in 610 children with idiopathic autism spectrum disorder, aged 2-18…

The goal of the current study was to determine within a clinical sample what differentiates children with ADHD who experience social functioning difficulties from those who appear to have healthy social functioning. Participants for this study included 62 children (mean age = 11.3 years) with a DSM-IV diagnosis of ADHD confirmed by a comprehensive…

Background: Physical activity and structural differences in the hippocampus have been linked to educational outcome. We investigated whether a curriculum-based physical activity intervention correlates positively with children's academic achievement, psychological well-being, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), fitness, and structural…

Background: The rising prevalence of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) increases the need for evidence-based behavioral treatments to lessen the impact of symptoms on children's functioning. At present, there are no curative or psychopharmacological therapies to effectively treat all symptoms of the disorder. Early intensive behavioral intervention…

The evidence base on outcomes associated with autism in older adulthood is limited. The expected increase in the prevalence of older adults with autism highlights the need to describe their profiles and service needs. Adults 50 years or older with an intellectual disability (ID) and the triad of impairments characteristic of autism spectrum…

We examined data collected as a part of the Autism Treatment Network, a group of 15 autism centers across the United States and Canada. Mean Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) scores of the 286 children assessed were significantly lower than those of healthy populations (according to published norms). When compared to normative data from…

Recent literature on the psychological adjustment of parents who have children with disabilities suggests that they encounter a range of challenges beyond those experienced by parents of typically developing children (Achiless, G.M., McLaughlin, M J , & Croninger, R.G. 2007; Brown & Pacini, 1989). This is particularly true when a special…

Background: Despite the acknowledged difficulties of measuring satisfaction for people with intellectual disabilities, the current study examined the quality of life (QoL) of the Camberwell Cohort, a total population sample of people with severe intellectual disability and/or autism [Wing & Gould, "Epidemiology and Classification," 9, 1979, 11].…

The authors studied the nature and function of the relationships of the comparative level of risk, sense of coherence (SOC), and well-being, over time, in mothers and fathers of preschool children with and without intellectual disabilities (IDs). The hypothesis that SOC functions as a moderator between risk and well-being was tested. Parents of…

Background: Narcolepsy is a predominantly rapid eye movement sleep disorder with onset usually in the second decade but often in earlier childhood. Classically it is characterized by combinations of excessive sleepiness especially sleep attacks, cataplexy, hypnagogic hallucinations, and sleep paralysis. The psychosocial effects of this lifelong…

This study examined anxiety symptoms in 29 adolescents with Asperger syndrome (AS) aged 12 to 16 years, compared to 30 nonclinical (NC) adolescents and 34 adolescents with anxiety disorders (AD). Comorbidity between anxiety symptoms and negative thoughts, behavioral problems, and life interference was also examined. Self- and parental reports…