Maternal Anxiety and Overprotection Effects Anxiety in Japanese Children with Developmental Disorders and Typical Development

Abstract

Background: Anxiety symptoms are common in children with developmental disorders(CDD), such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Studies have indicated that maternal anxiety and overprotective parenting are associated with the anxiety of children with typical development (CTD); the same factors might influence CDD’s anxiety. Methods: The hypothetical model of the influence of maternal factors, adding subscales of Sense of Coherence (SOC), on anxiety symptoms in CDD and CTD was examined. Mothers of CDD (n = 76) and CTD (n = 292) aged 6 to 15 were participants in the survey in Japan. Results: Multi-group path analysis indicated negative paths from SOC subscales to maternal anxiety and positive paths from maternal anxiety and overprotection to child anxiety in both groups. However, there were differences in the associations among maternal anxiety, overprotection, and SOC subscales between CDD and CTD mothers. Limitations: Limitations of this study are the assessment methods and the disproportionate group size. Conclusions: Our results indicated the similarities and differences within the models of maternal factors-based anxiety mechanisms in CTD and CDD.