Date of Conferral

8-7-2024

Date of Award

August 2024

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Psychology

Advisor

Sandra Caramela-Miller

Abstract

Elevated mental health issues and health care accessibility challenges may be exacerbated by the stressors experienced by military parents of autistic children. The purpose of this interpretative phenomenological analysis was to explore how military parents with autistic children experienced and perceived essential resource barriers. Parent perceptions of the obstacles they experienced with essential resource accessibility led to significant difficulties being identified. The stress process model was used to frame the concepts in this research. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with eight active duty or recently retired military parents who had at least one autistic child during their service. Themes from coding analysis reveal several barriers, moderators of stress, mental health outcomes, and needed resources. Environmental barriers include relocation, deployments, and the lack of community supports. Health care barriers consisted of TRICARE, providers, and stigma. Therapy, coping skills, healthcare, self-care, social support, and financial stability were moderating resources. Community support, advocacy, expanded TRICARE coverage, family deployment services, and increased respite care were necessary resources. Anxiety, depression, role strain, and stress proliferation were mental health outcomes linked to the barriers. Further investigation is needed regarding the implications of stigma, gender role differences, and military branch funding discrepancies. Positive social changes may result through increased awareness, community collaborations, and parental inclusions in policy developments. The results may be used to enhance understanding and increase advocacy, leading to improved accessibility of support services for military families with autistic children.

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