Objectives: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has a major impact on caregivers. We aimed to describe caregivers' perceptions concerning their level of knowledge about ASD and their needs to better adapt education and training programs.
Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study conducted through a declarative and self-administered survey in France.
Results: 1,013 individuals answered the questionnaire in 2020. If most caregivers felt they had sufficient knowledge about ASD, they still expressed a high level of needs regarding acquiring knowledge, identifying available resources, and finding social/emotional support.
Conclusions: This study highlights the high level of needs of caregivers and their expectations of improving their knowledge and skills to help the person with ASD.
Keywords: Autism spectrum disorder; Caregivers; Needs; Patient education; Self-care; Self-management.
© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.