ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: We tested the similarity-fit hypothesis that predicts more positive parenting when both parent and child have high levels of ADHD symptoms compared to when only one does. METHOD: Mothers and fathers of 156, 5 to 13 year old sons participated (110 boys with ADHD, 46 without). Parent inattentive and hyperactive-impulsive symptoms were examined, in interaction with child ADHD, as predictors of parental tolerance, empathy, encouragement of child autonomy, and positive parenting. RESULTS: Several interactions of parent ADHD symptoms and child ADHD were detected which suggested that for parents with low levels of symptoms, the presence of child ADHD was associated with less positive parenting attitudes and behavior, but this negative relation between positive parenting and child ADHD was dampened among parents with more ADHD symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: Considered alongside the well documented parenting difficulties associated with parental ADHD, our findings suggest that parental ADHD symptoms also may help to mitigate some of the challenges facing families of children with ADHD.
Subject(s)
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/psychology , Child of Impaired Parents/psychology , Parenting/psychology , Parents/psychology , Adolescent , Adult , Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity/diagnosis , Attitude , Child , Child, Preschool , Fathers/psychology , Female , Humans , Impulsive Behavior/physiology , Male , Middle Aged , Mothers/psychology , Motivation/physiologyABSTRACT
Previous studies linking parent ADHD symptoms to parenting have typically focused on each parent individually. To provide a broader understanding of family context, in this study, levels of inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity in mothers and fathers were examined, both individually and in combination, in relation to negative parenting and child-rearing disagreements. Two-parent families of 5 to 13 year old boys (126 with ADHD and 53 typically developing) participated. Parents reported their own ADHD symptoms and their perceptions of child-rearing disagreements. Parenting was measured using self-, partner-, and child-reports as well as observations. Controlling for child ADHD symptoms, inattention symptoms in fathers predicted parenting difficulties. For mothers, inattention symptoms were linked to parenting problems only when fathers also had high levels of inattention. In contrast, parenting was most problematic for both mothers and fathers in families in which fathers had higher and mothers had lower levels hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms. These results remained essentially unchanged when child externalizing behavior and mother depression and hostility were controlled, but father depression reduced the significance of some interactions. The results highlight the importance of the match between father and mother levels of symptoms, and point to differential relations of parenting to inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms in parents.