Living with the delusion of autism recovery: A grounded theory study on the experiences of mothers

The aim of this research is to gain in-depth understanding of the experiences of mothers with children who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or who are considered at risk of developing ASD. Charmaz's (2014) constructivist grounded theory approach was adopted in this research. The data sources of the research include 1) a forum called "Kadınlar Kulübü," 2) the transcriptions of nine in-depth interviews conducted to understand the experiences of mothers with autistic children before the research, and 3) in-depth interviews. The initial sample of the research was reached by analyzing the posts made by 10 participants on the Kadınlar Kulübü for an average of 1.5 years and the transcriptions of in-depth interviews conducted with nine mothers before. The theoretical sampling consists of four mothers who were interviewed in-depth. According to the data analysis procedures of the constructivist GT approach, the most abstract concept in the grounded theory constructed is the notion of parents trying to "recover from autism". In the final stage, the grounded theory is constructed around the conceptualization of "experiencing motherhood filled with crossroads and ups and downs while striving to recover from autism". The grounded theory explains mothers' experiences through three processes (pre-diagnosis process, doctor process, post diagnosis process) and three crossroads (decision to see a doctor, decision to start special education, decision to return to the doctor/start special education). The results of the research are discussed in conjunction with previous studies in the literature and existing theoretical explanations. Key Words: grounded theory, autism spectrum disorder, special needs, experiences, parenting