Advocacy, Self Advocacy and Autism Ranking:

Cost and Time

Cost

Generally, advocacy is provided free of charge by the advocate so there is no charge to the autistic person or their family members.

Some advocates and advocacy organisations are funded or part-funded by government agencies or by not for profit organisations such as the voluntary or community sector.

For self-advocates, the costs can be considerable and include time off work, travel etc.

Time

The amount of time it takes to provide advocacy will depend on a number of factors including the needs of the individual client, the nature of the problem (whether it is a short term or long term issue) and whether the person providing the advocacy faces any constraints (such as a limited number of hours per week).

Boshoff et al (2016) noted that advocacy can almost become a full time occupation for some parents,

“Parents described the personal impacts of advocacy in terms of the dedication, commitment and perseverance required in order to do everything they could for the well-being of their child. Parents described that advocacy required time, effort and energy. Lalvani (2012) reported that parents of higher socioeconomic status expended ‘inordinate amounts of time, effort and resources in order to effectively negotiate the special education system’. This was supported by McCabe (2007) who stated that ‘Advocacy and involvement was a fulltime activity for many parents and exhausting’. Parents shared many stories of the great lengths that they went to in order to obtain the help for their child in a timely fashion”.

Updated

17 Jun 2022

Last Review

01 Aug 2017

Next Review

01 Nov 2023