The relationship between parental burnout and maternal care quality in mothers of children with autism: the moderating role of parental reflective capacity

Background and Aim: Caring for a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) presents numerous challenges and may lead to parental burnout. Identifying factors that influence this burnout is of particular importance. This study aimed to investigate the moderating role of parental reflective capacity in the relationship between parental burnout and maternal care quality in mothers of children with autism. Methods: This descriptive-correlational study involved 100 mothers of children aged 3 to 7 years with autism, residing in Tehran in 2024. Participants were selected through convenience sampling. The mothers completed questionnaires assessing parental reflective capacity, maternal care quality, and parental burnout. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and path analysis in SPSS version 27. Results: Parental burnout and preoccupation with conflicts and confusion had a positive relationship, while sensitivity, responsiveness, and availability showed negative relationships with these factors (P<0.01). Furthermore, parental burnout was positively correlated with preoccupation and negatively correlated with certainty in mental states, as well as interest and curiosity about mental states (P<0.01). Additionally, certainty in mental states, and interest and curiosity about mental states were negatively correlated with conflict and confusion, while showing a positive relationship with sensitivity, responsiveness, and availability (P<0.01). Moderation analysis revealed that certainty in mental states, and interest and curiosity about mental states, significantly moderated the relationship between parental burnout and maternal sensitivity and responsiveness (P<0.05). Conclusion: The findings suggest that higher reflective capacity in mothers plays a critical role in reducing parental burnout and enhancing maternal sensitivity and responsiveness. Therefore, training mothers with autism children in reflective skills may help mitigate the negative effects of parental burnout on the quality of maternal care.