Understanding parents' concerns about their children with autism taking public school transportation in Los Angeles County.

ABSTRACT: There are a number of recent US news media reports of children and youth with autism becoming lost, injured, or even dying while taking public school transportation, yet research on this problem is scarce. This ethnographic study examines the experiences of 14 parents whose children with autism take public school transportation in Los Angeles County. We present two case studies of children with autism being "lost" while in transit from school to home on the bus to (1) describe how the situation was experienced, responded to, and managed by the parents; (2) consider three interrelated themes that emerged from interviews with 14 parents, related to children's safety, independence, and participation, across multiple contexts and analytic levels; and (3) discuss the findings in relation to US

SUBMITTER: Angell AM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5726953 | biostudies-literature | 2018 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature