| Abstract | The goal of this study was to examine the associations of marital satisfaction and power dynamics in couples raising autistic children compared to couples raising non-autistic children. Marital satisfaction is important to the longevity of a marriage, and the quality of a marriage can affect children's outcomes as well. Although prior research has established associations between power imbalances and low levels of marital satisfaction, there is no research examining these associations among parents raising children on the autism spectrum . To examine this question, couples with and without autistic children completed surveys and engaged in video recorded conflict discussions. The results indicated that wives raising autistic children reported significantly higher power than wives with non-autistic children at low and mean levels of satisfaction. Furthermore, levels of power observed during the conflict discussions were significantly associated with marital satisfaction. Using these results, it is important for clinicians to use therapeutic techniques that specifically target power imbalances in these couples and work to diminish them. |
