“Iranian family caregivers of autistic children: the experience of stigma”

Purpose Autistic children and their family caregivers are impacted widely by the social arrangements, which bring up a variety of problems and make their caregiving duties even more difficult. One of the main troubles family caregivers struggle with is the “Autism stigma” that eventually leads to social exclusion. This study aims to identify shreds of evidence of Autism stigma experienced by family caregivers of autistic children. The study also aims to present some general comparison between the findings in Iran and a few other countries’ available respective data to the “Autism stigma.” Design/methodology/approach This study is an inductive qualitative content analysis. Twelve family caregivers were purposefully selected. Data were gathered exercising semi-structured, in-depth interviews and scrutinized using content analysis method. Findings In the interviews with the participants, a new category called “Autism stigma” was discerned. This category includes three subcategories: “Diagnosis process,” “Lack of awareness” and “Presence in the society.” Originality/value In Iran, Autism is considered a kind of social stigma. It mainly happens due to a lack of public awareness about this psychological disorder. The family caregivers in the community suffer from the stigma of autism, which leads them to distance themselves from society. This paper aims to improve the social awareness in regard to the negative impacts of Autism stigma.