Adults and children with Asperger syndrome: Exploring adult attachment style, marital satisfaction and satisfaction with parenthood

Abstract

Asperger syndrome (AS) is a disorder resembling autism in its problems with social interaction and cognitive flexibility. Today, a number of adults with AS marry and rear children. Yet there has been little research into the quality of their marital and parental relationships. This study explored romantic attachment style, marital satisfaction and parenthood satisfaction in 157 Australian men and women. There was a focal group 22 married adults with a clinically-confirmed AS diagnosis whose child also had AS and three neuro-typical adult control groups: (a) those whose spouse and child had AS, (b) those whose child had AS but spouse did not, and (c) those with no AS family members. Marital satisfaction was high in all four groups. Respondents who had AS themselves were predominantly insecurely avoidant in romantic attachment, in contrast to predominantly securely attachment in all other groups. Having a child with AS reduced parental (though not marital) satisfaction but there was no additional independent contribution of own or spouse's AS. Methodological and practical implications of the findings were considered.