Perceptions of Child Attachment and Maternal Gratification in Mothers of Children With Autism and Down Syndrome

Administered questionnaires to assess maternal perception of child attachment and maternal gratification to 17 mothers of children with autism and 21 mothers of children with Down syndrome. As predicted, there was significantly lower perceived attachment and significantly lower gratification in the autistic than the Down syndrome sample. For both groups there was a significant correlation between perceived attachment and gratification. Open-ended interviews with 10 mothers from each group provided more details. These results highlight the autistic child's lack of interpersonal responsiveness as a source of parental stress.