Mediating Role of Emotion Regulation and Sibling Relationship Quality Among Young Adult Siblings of Individuals With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder

Purpose Siblings of autistic individuals (ASD-Sibs) report, on average, significantly less closeness and warmth in sibling relationships than siblings of non-disabled individuals (ND-Sibs). However, findings on other aspects of life satisfaction on well-being between ASD-Sibs and ND-sibs is more mixed. Therefore, understanding some potential mechanisms by which aspects of the sibling relationship relate to well-being for ASD-Sibs and ND-Sibs is needed. In particular, understanding how aspects of emotion regulation may relate to the sibling relationship may provide pathways for future support strategies. Methods The current study compared 42 non-disabled young adult siblings of autistic individuals to 145 non-disabled young adult siblings of non-disabled individuals. Participants completed an online survey with measures of sibling warmth and closeness, emotional reappraisal and emotional suppression, gratitude, life satisfaction, distress, and optimism. Moderated mediation analysis examined whether pathways amongst variables differed between ASD-Sibs and ND-Sibs. Results The ASD-Sibs reported significantly lower levels of warmth and closeness and significantly higher levels of distress. ASD-Sibs also reported greater use of emotional suppression. Both emotional suppression and reappraisal partially mediated the relationships between the sibling relationship and well-being variables, though such relationships did not significantly differ by group. Conclusion The current results indicate that strategies of emotional regulation may impact the relationship between sibling closeness/warmth and well-being among ASD-Sibs. More research is needed to determine how changes in emotional regulation may help improve both the relationship and well-being.