Mothering Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder during Covid-19 Pandemic: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.70550/gashes.v1i1.105Keywords:
Mothering, Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, Covid-19 Pandemic, ExperiencesAbstract
The shelter-in-place mandate imposed by the Indonesian government during the Covid-19 pandemic led to disruptions of school routines and therapy services for children living with autism spectrum disorder. Thus, this study aimed to describe the experiences of mothering autistic children during the pandemic. The methodology used by this research was qualitative. The intended population of this research was mothers of autistic children. This study chose four mothers as samples for this research who were then interviewed using interview questionnaires as main research instruments. The data were analysed using the interpretative phenomenological analysis and four main themes were identified. Those were changing roles of mothers during Covid-19 pandemic, factors that contributed to the parenting difficulties during the pandemic, how mothers coped with these difficulties, and the impacts of Covid-19 pandemic toward autistic children as well as their consequences for the process of mothering. The findings of this study highlighted the trials and tribulations of mothering autistic children during crisis situation and they will contribute to the improvements of educational and psychological services delivered to autistic children and their mothers during the pandemic.
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