From ‘Refrigerator Mothers’ to Empowered Advocates: The Evolution of the Autism Parent

Abstract

A historical perspective offers a chance to reflect on unfolding narratives. The emergence of the diagnosis of autism attracted some positions of blame for “refrigerator mothers”. With ensuing neuroscience and developmental research and more nuanced biopsychosocial models, this gave way to notions of strong neurological contributions to the disorder and the positive role of parents supporting the regulation of their child. The notion of co-regulation then emerges with collective agency by parents to offer advocacy and support for those with ASD and their parents and an important role in educating society around the needs and value of those with ASD.

Author’s contributions

All authors have agreed on the final version and meet at least one of the following criteria recommended by the ICMJE (http://www.icmje.org/recommendations/)

• Substantial contributions to conception and design, acquisition of data or analysis and interpretation of data; drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.