Child sleep onset latency mediates parental depression and noncompliance in autistic children

Abstract

Background

Parents diagnosed with depression often report that their children have difficulty following rules and falling asleep. Parents with depression are less likely to be consistent or enforce bedtimes, resulting in the child having fewer bedtime rules and getting less sleep. Over time this may mean the child develops poor sleep habits and difficulty falling asleep. Although these relationships have yet to be studied in children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), it is an important area given that approximately 80 % of autistic children have sleep difficulties.

Methods

The current study examined whether parent-reported child sleep onset latency (SOL) mediated the relationship between parental depression and child noncompliance. The sample (N=34) consisted of parents (82 % female) reporting on their children aged 6–12 (M=8.63, SD = 2.00; 76.5 % male). All children were diagnosed with ASD and had parent-reported sleep complaints. Measures included the Child Sleep Health Questionnaire (CSHQ), the Pediatric Symptom Checklist (PSC), and a question asking if the parent had been diagnosed with depression (yes/no).

Results

Greater parent-reported child SOL significantly mediated the relation between increased parental depression and greater noncompliance.

Conclusions

These results suggest that difficulty falling asleep may help to explain why children of parents who have depression are noncompliant.