African American Families on Autism Diagnosis and Treatment: The Influence of Culture

• Published in: Journal of autism and developmental disorders Vol. 45; no. 10; pp. 3244 - 3254
• Main Authors: Burkett, Karen, Morris, Edith, Manning-Courtney, Patricia, Anthony, Jean, Shambley-Ebron, Donna
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01-10-2015; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Access to Health Care; Adult; African American Children; African American Culture; African American families; African Americans; Autism; Autism Spectrum Disorder - epidemiology; Autism Spectrum Disorder - ethnology; Autism Spectrum Disorder - psychology; Autism Spectrum Disorders; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Care and treatment; Caring; Child; Child and School Psychology; Child Rearing; Clinical Diagnosis; Community; Cultural Characteristics; Cultural Differences; Cultural Influences; Diagnosis; Doctoral Dissertations; Ethnography; Family - psychology; Family Income; Female; Health Behavior; Healthcare Disparities; Humans; Knowledge Level; Neurosciences; Nursing Research; Original Paper; Parent Role; Patient outcomes; Pediatrics; Pervasive Developmental Disorders; Professional Personnel; Psychological aspects; Psychology; Public Health; Qualitative Research; Socioeconomic Status; Symptoms (Individual Disorders); Urban Areas; Whites; United States; ASD diagnosis; Health care disparities; African American families; Cultural factors; Autism spectrum disorder
• ISSN: 0162-3257; 1573-3432
• DOI: 10.1007/s10803-015-2482-x

Cultural factors such as health care access and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) symptom interpretations have been proposed as impacting delayed diagnosis and treatment for African American children with ASD. A qualitative study of urban African American families caring for their child with autism was conducted with 24 family members and 28 ASD professionals. Cultural caring meant families protected their child from harm including potential or actual distrustful encounters, and took action for their child and community to optimize their child’s health and address the knowledge deficits of ASD within their community. Families and professionals believed cultural influences delayed families’ receiving and seeking appropriate health care for the African American child with ASD affecting timely autism diagnosis and treatment.