Siblings of persons in the spectrum of autism: Exploring their concerns and supporting their needs

Abstract

Growing up with a brother or a sister with a developmental disability constitutes a unique and differentiated context for children of all ages (Abramovitch, Stanhope, Pepler, & Corter, 1987; Fisman, Wolf, Ellison, & Freeman, 2000). However, recent research has documented that having a sibling with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may not represent a major life-long challenge for the other children in the family (Yirmiya, Shaked & Erel, 2001). This is in sharp contrast to findings from earlier studies which supported the existence of greater internalizing and behavior problems in siblings of children with ASD in comparison with siblings of normally developing children (Rodrigue, Geffken, & Morgan, 1993). Later studies employing various comparison groups have provided evidence for the age of the siblings as an important factor for siblings' emotional well-being (Bauminger & Yirmiya, 2001). School age siblings of children with ASD seem to have reasonably good adjustment (Pilowsky, Yirmiya, Doppelt, Gross-Tsur, & Shalev, 2004), while adolescent siblings report higher rates of depression than siblings of non-disabled children (Gold, 1993).