REPORT OF A PILOT STUDY ON SEXUALITY COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS OF ADOLESCENTS WITH AUTISTIC SPECTRUM DISORDER

Abstract

The pilot study is a necessary stage of scientific work, it tests methods, procedures, and instruments before definitive data collection. This article describes the use of a pilot study applied in qualitative research on communication about sexuality with parents of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. This is a descriptive study on conducting a pilot study in the exploratory phase of research of an educational interventional nature of the action-research type. The pilot-evaluated questions elaborated in the semi-structured interview to identify communication problems about sexuality that parents have with their children and the answers submitted to content analysis. Two mothers were interviewed. Open questions revealed the need for adjustments and were reformulated, increasing from seven to nine. The pilot study proved to be an indispensable technique for the elaboration and application that precedes the definitive data collection.