The Relation Between Maternal ADHD Symptoms &; Improvement in Child Behavior Following Brief Behavioral Parent Training is Mediated by Change in Negative Parenting

This study examined the extent to which maternal attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms predict improvement in child behavior following brief behavioral parent training. Change in parenting was examined as a potential mediator of the negative relationship between maternal ADHD symptoms and improvement in child behavior. Seventy mothers of 6–10 year old children with ADHD underwent a comprehensive assessment of adult ADHD prior to participating in an abbreviated parent training program. Before and after treatment, parenting was assessed via maternal reports and observations and child disruptive behavior was measured via maternal report. Controlling for pre-treatment levels, maternal ADHD symptomatology predicted post-treatment child disruptive behavior problems. The relation between maternal ADHD symptomatology and improvement in child behavior was mediated by change in observed maternal negative parenting. This study replicated findings linking maternal ADHD symptoms with attenuated child improvement following parent training, and is the first to demonstrate that negative parenting at least partially explains this relationship. Innovative approaches combining evidence-based treatment for adult ADHD with parent training may therefore be necessary for families in which both the mother and child have ADHD. Larger-scale studies using a full evidence-based parent training program are needed to replicate these findings.     

The Role of Maternal and Child ADHD Symptoms in Shaping Interpersonal Relationships

The current study investigated the influence of maternal ADHD symptoms on: (a) mothers’ own social functioning; (b) their child’s social functioning; and (c) parent–child interactions following a lab-based playgroup involving children and their peers. Participants were 103 biological mothers of children ages 6–10. Approximately half of the children had ADHD, and the remainder were comparison youth. After statistical control of children’s ADHD diagnostic status and mothers’ educational attainment, mothers’ own inattentive ADHD symptoms predicted poorer self-reported social skills. Children with ADHD were reported to have more social problems by parents and teachers, as well as received fewer positive sociometric nominations from playgroup peers relative to children without ADHD. After control of child ADHD status, higher maternal inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity each predicted children having more parent-reported social problems; maternal inattention predicted children receiving more negative sociometric nominations from playgroup peers. There were interactions between maternal ADHD symptoms and children’s ADHD diagnostic status in predicting some child behaviors and parent–child relationship measures. Specifically, maternal inattention was associated with decreased prosocial behavior for children without ADHD, but did not influence the prosocial behavior of children with ADHD. Maternal inattention was associated with mothers’ decreased corrective feedback and, at a trend level, decreased irritability toward their children with ADHD, but there was no relationship between maternal inattention and maternal behaviors for children without ADHD. A similar pattern was observed for maternal hyperactivity/impulsivity and mothers’ observed irritability towards their children. Treatment implications of findings are discussed.     

Testing the interactive effect of parent and child ADHD on parenting in mothers and fathers: A further test of the similarity‐fit hypothesis

Mother and child ADHD symptoms both have a negative effect on parenting. Little is known about how these characteristics interact. In a recent paper, we reported two studies that suggested that maternal ADHD ameliorated the negative effects of child ADHD on negative parenting supporting a similarity‐fit hypothesis. The aim of the current paper is to extend this analysis to a sample of mothers and fathers. The study examined the association between child and adult ADHD symptoms on child‐specific parenting practices in 278 mothers and 85 fathers from a population‐based sample of school‐age children. As in the previous study, high levels of ADHD symptoms in mothers ameliorated the negative effects of child ADHD on parenting – supporting the similarity‐fit hypothesis. Fathers demonstrated the opposite effect with high levels of ADHD exacerbating the effects of child ADHD – supporting a similarity‐misfit hypothesis. The study confirms the important role played by parental ADHD symptoms in parenting while highlighting differences between mothers and fathers in this regard.     

The Contribution of Maternal ADHD Symptomatology,Maternal DAT1, and Home Atmosphere to Child ADHD Symptomatology at 7 Years of Age

Children of mothers with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have an increased genetic and environmental risk for ADHD. The unique and interactive contributions of a maternal dopamine receptor gene (DAT1), maternal ADHD symptoms (hyperactive- impulsive, inattentive), and home atmosphere to the prediction of ADHD symptoms (hyperactive- impulsive, inattentive) in 7- year-old boys (N = 96) were examined using data from a longitudinal study of familial risk for ADHD. During the first 6 months of the study, mothers and their spouses completed a questionnaire about the mother’s ADHD symptoms. Home atmosphere questionnaire data were collected 4 years later. At the 7-year assessment, mothers reported on their child’s ADHD symptoms. Negative home atmosphere was significantly associated with child hyperactive-impulsive and inattentive symptoms. Maternal inattentive symptoms were significantly correlated with both child symptom dimensions. Regression models, with child genotype and maternal education controlled, showed main effects for maternal inattentive symptoms, maternal DAT1 10/10 genotype, and home atmosphere in the prediction of child inattentive symptoms. Only home atmosphere predicted child hyperactive-impulsive symptoms. There was a significant home atmosphere x maternal hyperactive-impulsive symptoms interaction in the prediction of child hyperactive-impulsive symptoms. Boys with higher levels of symptoms came from homes characterized by higher levels of negative atmosphere and had mothers with higher levels of hyperactive-impulsive symptoms. There was also a trend (p = 0.075) for a maternal DAT1 x home atmosphere interaction. Boys with higher levels of inattentive symptoms came from homes with higher levels of negative atmosphere and had mothers with the homozygous 10/10 genotype. The maternal heterozygous 9/10 genotype did not predict child symptoms.     

Maternal Symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Maternal Language: Implications for Infant Language Development

The relationship between maternal ADHD symptoms and maternal language was examined in a community sample of 50 mothers of infants age 3–12 months. It was hypothesized that higher maternal symptoms of ADHD would be related to lower quality of maternal language use. Recordings of mothers’ speech were coded for complexity and elaboration of speech and vocabulary diversity during an interview with an adult and during mother–infant play interactions in the home. Hierarchical regression analysis revealed that maternal ADHD symptoms were significantly related to mothers’ lower mean length of utterances during the interview and during mother–infant play interactions. Maternal ADHD symptoms were not related to maternal vocabulary use in either of these situations. Our findings suggest that mothers with higher ADHD symptoms may display exiguous language behaviors when interacting with their infants and with adults. In addition, findings suggest one reason why current parent-management programs for children with ADHD, which are verbally based and rely heavily on the parent’s communication skills, are relatively ineffective when ADHD may be present in the parent.     

Parent stress and coping in relation to child ADHD severity and associated child disruptive behavior problems.

Examined parent role distress and coping in relation to childhood attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in mothers and fathers of 66 children age 7 to 11 (42 boys, 24 girls; mean age = 10.2). Parents of children with ADHD combined and inattentive subtypes expressed more role dissatisfaction than parents of control children. Parents of ADHD combined and inattentive type children did not differ significantly in levels of distress. For mothers, child inattention and oppositional-conduct problems but not hyperactivity contributed uniquely to role distress (dissatisfaction related to parenting or parenting performance). For fathers, parenting role distress was associated uniquely with child oppositional or aggressive behaviors but not with ADHD symptom severity. Parent coping by more use of positive reframing (thinking about problems as challenges that might be overcome) was associated with higher role satisfaction for both mothers and fathers. Community supports were associated with higher distress for mothers only.     

Association Between Independent Reports of Maternal Parenting Stress and Children’s Internalizing Symptomatology

Although considerable research has investigated parenting stress and children’s externalizing behavior problems, comparatively less has considered parenting stress in relation to children’s internalizing difficulties. Even less research on parenting stress has incorporated children’s report of their internalizing symptoms or the potential mediating role of children’s attributional style. The current study hypothesized that children’s independent reports of internalizing symptoms would be associated with mothers’ reports of parenting stress through children’s attributional style. A community sample of 92 mother–child dyads participated. Results suggest maternal parenting stress from both child and parent sources were significantly associated with children’s anxious and depressive symptoms. Parenting stress was associated with children’s internalizing symptoms partially mediated by children’s maladaptive attributional style, primarily negative attributions for positive outcomes. Findings are discussed in terms of future directions to tease apart specific areas of parenting stress that may be most pertinent as well as to explore other cognitive mechanisms in children that may relate to parenting stress and children’s adjustment.     

Symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Social and School Adjustment: The Moderating Roles of Age and Parenting

This study examined the associations between symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and social and school adjustment (academic performance, peer relationships, school social problems) and the moderating roles of children’s age and maternal parenting (affection and overprotection) in these associations. The sample consisted of 2,463 students who were in the first to ninth grade in northern Taiwan. Results from the linear mixed models demonstrated that ADHD symptoms were inversely associated with academic performance and positively associated with social adjustment problems. Further, children’s age and maternal parenting moderated the associations between ADHD symptoms and school and social adjustment. For example, maternal overprotection moderated the relation between hyperactivity and negative peer relationships (i.e., difficulty forming and maintaining friendships), such that this relation was stronger for children who experienced higher levels of overprotection than children who did not. Moreover, children’s age moderated the association between attention problems and decreased academic performance, such that this association was stronger for older children and adolescents than for younger children. Furthermore, children’s age and maternal affection interacted to influence the association between attention problems and school social problems (i.e., bullying, aggression, and peer rejection) with maternal affection acting as a buffer for older children (grades 4–6) only. These findings are discussed from a developmental psychopathology perspective.     

The Relation Between Maternal Symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Mother–Infant Interaction

The relationship between maternal symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and specific maternal behaviors was examined in a community sample of 40 mothers of infants aged 3–8 months. It was hypothesized that maternal ADHD symptoms would be related to lower levels of maternal sensitivity, and higher levels of maternal intrusiveness and negative regard. Mothers and their infants were observed and video-recorded in their homes while interacting in a feeding, play, and task situation. A series of hierarchical regressions partially supported the hypothesized relations: Of the specific maternal ADHD symptoms, maternal inattentive symptoms significantly predicted maternal insensitivity, intrusiveness, and negative regard above and beyond maternal symptoms of anxiety and maternal ratings of infant activity. These findings suggest that mothers reporting ADHD symptoms, particularly the inattentive cluster of symptoms, may experience difficulties in interactions with their infants. Early interventions that address these difficulties may be warranted to facilitate development and reduce the likelihood of adverse outcomes in children of mothers with symptoms of ADHD.     

Parenting Stress, Social Support, and Depression for Ethnic Minority Adolescent Mothers: Impact on Child Development

Rates of teenage pregnancies are higher for African American and Latina adolescents compared to their White peers. African American and Latina adolescent mothers also experience more adversities than their White peers, such as higher rates of depression, school dropout, and economic disadvantage. Furthermore, children of adolescent mothers are at higher risk for adverse development. Parenting stress and social support can impact outcomes experienced by adolescent parents and their children. The present study examined the influence of adolescent mothers’ parenting stress and perceived social support on maternal depression at baseline (6 months after birth), and its impact on infant development 1 year later (18 months after birth). Participants were 180 adolescent mothers of African American or Latino/Hispanic descent. Results suggest that higher levels of parenting stress and less perceived social support were associated with higher levels of depression in the adolescent mothers at baseline. Higher levels of maternal depression were also associated with more developmental delays in infants 1 year post-baseline. Additionally, depression mediated the relationship between parenting stress and later child outcomes. These findings highlight the importance of examining parenting factors such as parenting stress, social support, and maternal depression in ethnic minority adolescent parents, and provide valuable information regarding unique risk and protective factors associated with positive maternal outcomes for ethnic minority adolescent parents and healthy development for their children.     

Parenting empathy: Associations with dimensions of parent and child psychopathology

Background. Parenting empathy, the understanding by parents, and the sharing in their child's perspective, represents an important element of competent parenting. The present study tested the hypotheses that maternal empathy might be lower where mothers or their children display symptoms of psychopathology. Method. Mothers (N = 268) of school‐aged children completed questionnaires on child‐directed empathy and egoistic personal distress and their own and their child's symptoms of psychopathology across a number of broadly defined domains. Results. Child conduct problems were associated with decreased child‐directed empathy and increased maternal egoistic distress. Maternal aggressive characteristics and maternal ADHD symptoms were each associated with increased egoistic personal distress. Conclusion. The findings indicate that symptoms of psychopathology in children and adults are associated with deficits in empathy and increased maternal egoistic personal distress. The implications of the findings for responsive parenting and child social behaviour are discussed.     

Mother-child relationships of children with ADHD: the role of maternal depressive symptoms and depression-related distortions

We investigated the DepressionDistortion hypothesis by examining the effects of maternal depressive symptoms on cross-informant discrepancies in reports of child behavior problems and several measures of parent–child relationship. The sample included ninety-six 6 to 10-year-old children diagnosed with ADHD-Combined Type, and their mothers, who provided baseline data before participating in a randomized clinical trial. Measures incorporated child characteristics, self-reports of maternal depressive symptoms, parenting practices, and laboratory mother–child interactions. Elevations in maternal depressive symptoms were associated with maternal reports of negative parenting style but not with observed laboratory interactions. Mothers' levels of depressive symptoms predicted negative biases in their reports of their child's ADHD symptoms, general behavior problems, and their own negative parenting style. Whereas levels of depressive symptoms did not predict observed parenting behaviors, maternal distortions did predict problematic parent–child interactions. Exploratory analyses showed a marginally significant mediation effect of the relationship between maternal depressive symptomatology and reports of negative parenting by depressive distortions. We discuss implications of linkages between depressive symptoms in mothers, depression-related distortions, and mother–child relationships for research and intervention in developmental psychopathology.     

Relations Between Emotion Regulation, Parenting, and Psychopathology in Young Maltreated Children in Out of Home Care

Young maltreated children, birth to three years, represent the age group with the highest rates of maltreatment in the United States (ACYF 2007). There are few studies to date that have investigated early childhood maltreatment and its effects on emotion regulatory processes and psychopathology. In response, the current investigation uses a dyadic assessment procedure to examine the relationship between parenting, emotion regulation, and symptoms of psychopathology among maltreating and non-maltreating parent–child interactions. The participants in this study were 123 children (66 maltreated and 57 nonmaltreated) from ages 1–3. Child and parent affect and child effortful control were observed during a parent–child interaction task. Symptoms of psychopathology were measured using the Child Behavior Checklist. The maltreated children exhibited more anger, more internalizing symptomatology, and less positive affect compared to non-maltreated children. Among maltreated children, emotion dysregulation was associated with internalizing symptomatology. Moreover, these data reveal parental positive affect was associated with lower child internalizing symptomatology and parental anger was associated with higher child internalizing symptomatology in the entire sample. This investigation offers evidence that emotion dysregulation subsequent to poor dyadic interactions is associated with early child maltreatment. These data suggest that maltreated children experience difficulties in emotion regulation which may be related to their higher levels of behavioral symptomatology.     

Predictors of Boys’ ADHD Symptoms from Early to Middle Childhood: The Role of Father–Child and Mother–Child Interactions

This prospective 3 year longitudinal study investigated preschool paternal and maternal parenting predictors of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder(ADHD) in a community sample of 93 school-age boys. Participants were recruited on the basis of inattention-hyperactivity at age 4 and fathers and mothers were observed interacting with their sons. Teachers, fathers, and mothers reported children's ADHD symptoms and impairment. Results from dimensional analysis showed that less observed paternal sensitivity and maternal positive regard predicted higher levels of inattentiveness in middle childhood, and that intrusive paternal behavior was predictive of hyperactive-impulsive behavior at school. In categorical analysis, less maternal warmth and sensitivity were predictive of later ADHD. These predictions held after statistical adjustment for the effects of preschool ADHD behaviors and conduct problems. At follow-up, parents of boys with ADHD reported more negative child-parent relationship perceptions than comparison parents. Findings highlight the importance of examining responsive parenting behaviors of both fathers and mothers in relation to multi-informant ratings of ADHD symptoms.     

Mediators and Moderators of the Relation between Parental ADHD Symptomatology and the Early Development of Child ADHD and ODD Symptoms

The present study examined mediators and moderators of the relation between parental ADHD symptomatology and the development of child attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) symptoms across the preschool years. Participants included 258 (138 boys) 3-year-old children (M = 44.13 months, SD = 3.39) with and without behavior problems and their parents who took part in a 3-year longitudinal study. Maternal ADHD symptoms predicted later ADHD symptoms in children, controlling for early child symptomatology. Both family history of ADHD and paternal comorbid psychopathology predicted later child ADHD and ODD symptoms, but they did not account for the association between maternal and child ADHD symptoms. Although paternal ADHD symptoms were associated with age 3 child ADHD symptoms, they did not significantly predict later child ADHD symptoms controlling for early symptomatology. Family adversity moderated the relation between maternal ADHD and child ADHD symptoms, such that the relation between maternal and child ADHD symptoms was stronger for families with less adversity. Maternal overreactive parenting mediated the relation between maternal ADHD symptoms and later child ADHD and ODD symptoms. Our findings suggest that targeting paternal comorbid psychopathology and maternal parenting holds promise for attenuating the effects of parental ADHD on children’s ADHD.     

Maternal depression and early positive parenting predict future conduct problems in young children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at risk for adverse outcomes such as substance abuse and criminality, particularly if they develop conduct problems. Little is known about early predictors of the developmental course of conduct problems among children with ADHD, however. Parental psychopathology and parenting were assessed in 108 children who first met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.) criteria for ADHD at 4-7 years old. When demographic variables and baseline ADHD and conduct problems were controlled, maternal depression predicted conduct problems 2-8 years following the initial assessment, whereas positive parenting during the structured parent- child interaction task predicted fewer future conduct problems. These findings suggest that maternal depression is a risk factor, whereas early positive parenting is a protective factor, for the developmental course of conduct problems among children with ADHD.     

UNDERSTANDING PARENTING STRESS AND CHILDREN'S BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS AMONG HOMELESS,SUBSTANCE‐ABUSING MOTHERS

This article tested a model of parenting stress as a mediator between maternal depressive symptoms, emotion regulation, and child behavior problems using a sample of homeless, substance‐abusing mothers. Participants were 119 homeless mothers (ages 18–24 years) and their young children (ages 0–6 years). Mothers responded to questions about their depressive symptoms, emotion regulation, parenting stress, and child behavior problems. A path analysis showed that maternal depressive symptoms were positively associated with child behavior problems through increased parenting stress whereas maternal cognitive reappraisal was negatively associated with child behavior problems through decreased parenting stress. Moreover, maternal expressive suppression was negatively related to child externalizing problems. Findings support the parenting stress theory and highlight maternal parenting stress as a mechanism associated with homeless children's mental health risk. This study has significant implications for understanding the parenting processes underlying child's resilience in the context of homelessness and maternal substance use.     

Parenting stress in parents of children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and parents of children with learning disabilities

Parenting a child with ADHD can challenge parenting resources and coping. Increasingly, researchers are examining the relationship between the behavior of the child with ADHD and family functioning. While studies have shown inceased parenting stress in parents of children with ADHD, these studies have compared children with ADHD to non-disabled children. This study compares reports of parenting stress among mothers of children with ADHD, mothers of children with learning disabilities and mothers of non-referred children. Results showed that parenting stress was highest for mothers of children with ADHD. Increased parenting stress was associated with child characteristics and, in particular, with externalizing behavior problems.     

Does Child Temperament Play a Role in the Association Between Parenting Practices and Child Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder?

Ineffective parenting practices may maintain or exacerbate attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms and shape subsequent development of disruptive behavior disorders (DBD’s) in youth with ADHD. Recent theoretical models have suggested that parenting may exert effects on ADHD via its role in child temperament. The current study aimed to evaluate the indirect effects of parenting dimensions on child ADHD symptoms via child temperament. Youth ages 6–17 years (N?=?498; 50.4 % ADHD, 55 % male) completed a multi-stage, multi-informant assessment that included parent, child, and teacher report measures of parenting practices, child temperament, and ADHD symptoms. Statistical models examined the direct and indirect effects of maternal and paternal involvement, poor supervision, and inconsistent discipline on inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity via child temperament and personality traits. Results indicated differential patterns of effect for negative and positive parenting dimensions. First, inconsistent discipline exerted indirect effects on both ADHD symptom dimensions via child conscientiousness, such that higher levels of inconsistency predicted lower levels of conscientiousness, which in turn, predicted greater ADHD symptomatology. Similarly, poor supervision also exerted indirect effects on inattention via child conscientiousness as well as significant indirect effects on hyperactivity-impulsivity via its impact on both child reactive control and conscientiousness. In contrast, primarily direct effects of positive parenting (i.e., involvement) on ADHD emerged. Secondary checks revealed that similar pathways may also emerge for comorbid disruptive behavior disorders. Current findings extend upon past work by examining how parenting practices influence child ADHD via with-in child mechanisms and provide support for multi-pathway models accounting for heterogeneity in the disorder.