A Holistic Support Framework for Caregivers of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental illness that affects around 1 in 100 persons and causes significant challenges for children and their families. “Often, caregivers experience psychological distress, financial hardship, social isolation and increased parenting stress. Though behavioural and educational treatments have progressed significantly, there has been little focus paid to the integration of technology-assisted interventions with social work practice for the delivery of comprehensive caregiver support. This conceptual review will be limited to the Kerala context and will evaluate current research on caregiver stress, family-centred social work techniques and novel technology-assisted treatments for families of children with ASD. A conceptual scoping examination of existing peer-reviewed research was undertaken to gather data on caregiver experiences, assistive technologies, digital health therapies, robotics, artificial intelligence, wearable monitoring devices, and family support approaches. The research shows that needs of caregivers are complicated and need integrated community-based technical, social and psychological support. The existing methodologies are still fragmented, with little research offering culturally relevant frameworks and integrating professional social work interventions with technology-assisted care. In response, this study presents the Holistic Support Framework (HSF), a conceptual model that encompasses community support, technology-supported care, social work practice, collaborative co-parenting, and detailed family assessment. This paradigm provides a basis for future empirical testing and practical recommendations for academics, practitioners and policy makers working to increase caregiver well-being and family resilience in autism care