Parents of children with Asperger syndrome: Relationships between early attachment, ego functioning, and parenting behaviors

Parents of children with Asperger Syndrome (AS) were studied to determine the relationship between the parents' personalities, their perceptions of their child's illness, and their parenting behavior. Two-hundred sixty-two subjects, recruited via AS advocacy websites, completed an internet protocol consisting of Parental Bonding Instrument, the Bell Object Relations and Reality Inventory (Form O), the Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire, and the Parenting Behavior Inventory. Results confirm that subjects' attachment to their own parents correlated with parenting behaviors. Relationships were found between object relatedness and parenting. The hypothesized relationship between AS symptoms and parenting behavior was not supported. Relationships were found between demographic variables (especially income and marital status) and parenting behavior. Findings are discussed from the perspective of professional contributions to social policy and working with this population.