Maternal ADHD, Parenting, and Psychopathology Among Mothers of Adolescents With ADHD

Abstract

Objective: This study describes the parenting and psychopathology of mothers with ADHD of adolescents with ADHD (MCA), non-ADHD mothers of adolescents with ADHD (CA), and non-ADHD mothers of adolescents without ADHD (COMP). Method: Two sets of pairwise comparisons: (a) COMP versus CA and (b) CA versus MCA were conducted. We hypothesized that CA would experience greater distress in parenting and psychopathology compared with COMP and that MCA would experience even more impairment compared with CA. Results: Few differences emerged in comparisons of CA and COMP, with the exception of CA reporting greater parent–adolescent conflict and internalizing problems. In contrast, differences consistently emerged in comparisons of MCA and CA showing more difficulty for MCA in parenting and psychopathology. Conclusion: These findings underscore the need for treatments that address parental ADHD when adolescent ADHD is the intended target.