CFT guided self-help intervention: Parents of Autistic Children v1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Testing a compassion-focused guided self-help intervention for parents of autistic children - single case series design
IRAS ID
365576
Contact name
Molly Beardsmore
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Nottingham
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
000, 000
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 5 months, 30 days
Research summary
Parents of autistic children can experience increased mental and physical health difficulties including increased parental stress compared to parents of neurotypical children. These often occur due to multifaceted and pervasive challenges such as but not limited to; rigidity of schedules, social isolation, behavioural challenges, difficulties balancing child needs with work schedules and increased incidence of healthcare appointments.
Research has examined whether compassion-focused therapy (CFT) interventions can be effective in improving mental health outcomes in parents of autistic children, and data has shown effectiveness. However, thus far data has been predominantly based on researcher-led interventions and there has been limited research regarding self-guided CFT interventions for this population. The proposed study aims to complete pilot testing on an adapted guided self-help CFT intervention, to consider whether the intervention is feasible within this population and whether there is an impact on parental self-compassion, compassion to others, parental stress and perceived child behaviour.
The study aims to recruit parents over the age of 18 years old, with a child aged 6-17 years old who has a confirmed diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. Recruitment for the study will be supported by NHS sites within the East Midlands to identify eligible parents, however the study will be conducted by the research team. The study will involve 3 weeks of pre-intervention outcome measures, 6 weeks of self-guided CFT intervention with weekly support calls with the researcher (outcome measures will also be completed at these calls). There will be a further 4 weeks of post-intervention data collection.REC name
London - Chelsea Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
26/LO/0303
Date of REC Opinion
18 May 2026
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion