Satisfaction of Early Intervention Programme among Parents of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): A Pilot Study in Malaysia

Abstract

Early intervention services play an essential role in order to support families of the children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In Malaysia, initial development of early intervention services has started for children with ASD. In order to improve the quality of early intervention services, it is important to ascertain the perceptions of parents with children with ASD. Thus, this study was aimed to determine the correlation between demographic of parents with children with ASD related to parental satisfaction to the early intervention services at GENIUS Kurnia Centre, Malaysia. A total of 156 parents of children with ASD aged between 3 to 7 years old who were receiving the early intervention programme, participated through stratified random sampling completed the sociodemographic survey and Client Satisfaction Questionnaire (CSQ-8). All 156 respondents reported a high level of satisfaction through calculation of the mean score of CSQ-8, which was 28.69, with a range from 20 to 32 (SD = 3.17). Sociodemographic characteristics such as child's gender, child's current and diagnosis age, presence of health problems, parent's age and educational level, and family monthly income were found to be not related to satisfaction. Our pilot study suggested that this early intervention programme provides essential support for families of children with ASD regardless of their demographic background. In future research, it is recommended to explore other variables that are linked with parents’ satisfactions. Additionally, qualitative approaches such as interviews, should be used to measure parental satisfaction, as this will provide more insight on the parents’ experiences.