City Research Online

Abstract

Parents of children with neurodevelopmental conditions, such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), report higher stress levels and mental health difficulties compared to parents of typically developing children. The adolescent period can present particular challenges and there is a need to better understand how best to support parents’ mental health during this time. This systematic review examines the effectiveness of interventions focused on improving the mental health of parents of adolescents with neurodevelopmental conditions and synthesises details about the intervention characteristics. We included 31 peer-reviewed papers describing 19 unique mental health interventions for parents of children aged between 10 and 19 years and diagnosed with neurodevelopmental conditions. Studies were retrieved from nine databases and their quality was appraised using Joanna Briggs Institute quality assessment. Results are reported using narrative synthesis. Mindfulness-based interventions (MBI), examined in 23 studies, reported significant reductions in stress levels and improved trait mindfulness, whilst reductions of depressive symptoms and anxiety were mixed. Psychoeducation-based interventions (PEBI), reported in 5 studies, showed significant increases in self-efficacy and reduction of depressive symptoms, but not in stress. Therapeutic-based interventions (e.g., CBT, ACT) were the focus of 4 studies and findings among them were inconclusive. Most interventions were implemented in the format of psychoeducational lectures (17 studies), and mindfulness-based techniques (22 studies) in group settings (25 studies), with eight to nine 90-minute sessions. Whereas research in interventions supporting parental mental health is in its infancy, there is some support that mindfulness-based intervention and psychoeducation can be helpful.

Publication Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Publisher Keywords:	Neurodevelopmental conditions, Parents, Intervention, Mental health, Autism, Adhd
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC0321 Neuroscience. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Departments:	School of Health & Medical Sciences School of Health & Medical Sciences > Nursing
SWORD Depositor:	Symplectic Administrator

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