title: Parent Expectations Mediate Outcomes for Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
abstract: Understanding the complex relationships among factors that may predict the outcomes of young adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is of utmost importance given the increasing population undergoing and anticipating the transition to adulthood. With a sample of youth with ASD (n = 1170) from the National Longitudinal Transition Study-2, structural equation modeling techniques were used to test parent expectations as a mediator of young adult outcomes (i.e., employment, residential independence, social participation) in a longitudinal analysis. The mediation hypothesis was confirmed; family background and functional performance variables significantly predicted parent expectations which significantly predicted outcomes. These findings add context to previous studies examining the role of parent expectations on young adult outcomes and inform directions for family-centered interventions and future research.
authors.affiliation: Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA. avkirby@gmail.com.|Division of Occupational Therapy, University of Utah, 520 Wakara Way, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USA. avkirby@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Anne V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Kirby
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000067877:Autism Spectrum Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D016208:Databases, Factual / Q000639:trends; D004651:Employment / Q000523:psychology* / Q000639:trends; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D058992:Social Participation / Q000523:psychology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Adult outcomes; Autism spectrum disorder; Parent expectations; Structural equation modeling; Transition