The research topic is “The stress among parents and children with Autism and families that are fully connected with supportive services and those that are not connected.”
The independent variable for this study is the autism disorder while the dependent variables are stress, income, support, and self-esteem. The autism disorder is independent as it affects the dependent variables which are stress, financial stability, support, and self-esteem. Development of autism fosters development of stress, low self esteem, and financial instability of the affected families (Schaefer Whitby, Lyons, " Baxter, 2015). Thus, independent variables (stress, low self-esteem, support services, and income) rely on the development, control, and eradication of autism disorder for a family member. In this study, the level of stress among parents and children with autism is dependent on the accessibility to the supportive services.
Stress and income which are dependent variables may be classified as continuous variables. Stress is an interval variable where a scale may be used to measure the stress levels among participants. A scale of 0 to 10 may be used on the questionnaire when the respondents who have autism disorder will be required to tick on the number from 0 to 10 that corresponds to their level of stress (Litzelman, K., et al. 2014). In determining the level of stress among participants with autism disorder, the higher the scale number (0-10) the higher the stress level. For example if a respondent who ticks 10 on the scale, he or she has a higher stress level as compared to one who ticks 0 or a lesser number on the scale. Income is a categorical variable which may be measured using quantitative tools such ranges. Self-esteem is a categorical variable which may be ranked as dichotomous variable. In measuring self-esteem, this variable may be categorized as either low or high.
References
Litzelman, K., et al. (2014). Role of global stress in the health-related quality of life of
caregivers: Evidence from the Survey of the Health of Wisconsin. Quality of Life Research, 23(5), 1569-1578.
Schaefer Whitby, P., Lyons, C., " Baxter, C. (2015). Preschool: Teaching Preschoolers With
Autism: Interventions to Ensure Access, Participation, and Support. YC Young Children, 70(3), 76-83.
