Mothers walking in the rain: A projective study on attachment representations and coping strategies in mothers of children with autism

This study aims to examine the attachment representations and coping strategies of mothers of children diagnosed with autism through projective drawing tests. A qualitative method was employed, using the "Person Walking in the Rain Drawing" and "Bird's Nest Drawing" tests as data collection tools. The study group consisted of 100 women in total: 50 mothers of children with autism and 50 mothers of typically developing children. The drawings were analyzed using content analysis. The results revealed that mothers of children with autism included more protective elements, sad facial expressions, and heavy rain themes in their drawings, while the mothers of typically developing children used more joyful and relational elements. In the Bird's Nest drawings, autistic children depicted less parental closeness, family figures, and color vividness compared to the control group. The findings suggest that mothers of children with autism tend to have more anxious attachment patterns, higher stress levels, and greater emotional withdrawal. Projective drawing tests are shown to be effective tools for understanding these internal representations.