It has long been believed that the divorce rate for parents with autistic children is higher than the national average; that it is as high as 80%, according to certain estimates. However, a new study led by Brian Freedman from the Center for Autism and Related Disorders at Kennedy Krieger Institute has indicated that this is not so.
The study examined data relating to 75,000 children aged 3 to 17, from the national survey of children’s health.
The data collected in the study indicated that 64% of kids with autism had set of (2) parents; and that a similar proportion of children without autism also had a set of (2) parents.
So the statistics show that the parents of kids with autism are no more or less likely to have their marriage end in divorce.
In fact looked at the positive way, parents may find that having a common goal of bringing up a child with special needs in fact brings out the best in them. They may find that they are more focused on the larger picture and less inclined to quibble about the smaller things in life, working towards the undoubtedly daunting task understanding the complexity of condition such as autism.
