| Abstract | Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often display externalizing behaviors, such as aggression and hyperactivity, that impact their adaptive functioning, decrease parental mental health, and adversely impact family functioning. Child-, parent-, and family-level factors often directly negatively impact the child and are associated with higher levels of externalizing behaviors. As parenting has been shown to affect the level of child externalizing behaviors in neurotypical children, it is possible that parenting may act to mediate these relationships in children with ASD. The goal of the current study was to examine the extent to which parenting behaviors mediated associations between child-, parent-, and family-level factors and child externalizing behaviors. The current study included 117 families (mother, father, and child) of children with ASD. Parents answered a series of questionnaires related to the determinants of parenting, parenting behaviors, and child externalizing behaviors. Results indicated that, for mothers, parenting warmth mediated the relationship between child age, depressive symptoms, family cohesion, and family conflict and child externalizing behaviors. For fathers, parenting warmth only mediated the relationship between child-level factors (age and verbal ability) and child externalizing behaviors. Results of the study support prior research and Belsky’s (1984) determinants of parenting theory. |
