Informant gender differences in parental reports of Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder behavior in boys and girls

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Jennifer L. Sommer (Creator)
Institution
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
Advisor
Lilly Shanahan

Abstract: Childhood AD/HD assessments rely almost exclusively on maternal report of children's behavior, thereby leaving open the possibility that fathers might report AD/HD behaviors differently. Despite this possibility, true comparisons of mothers' and fathers' reports are difficult to ascertain given that commonly used assessment procedures were developed primarily from mothers' reports and the parent, child, and family variables that may contribute to differences in reporting are often not taken into account. In response to these concerns, the current study explored mothers' and fathers' ratings of children displaying AD/HD behaviors. In the first phase of the study, two videos, one of a boy and one of a girl displaying comparable AD/HD and normative behavior, were developed and standardized. In the second phase, 50 mother-father dyads of children with behavioral problems rated the videos. Primary analyses did not support the first hypothesis that mothers would rate AD/HD behaviors at higher levels than fathers. Although no significant differences emerged, trends revealed that fathers rated the boy and girl more severely than mothers. Mothers and fathers also rated the girl's AD/HD symptoms more severely than the boy's symptoms. Additionally, parent and family variables, including parents' knowledge of AD/HD, marital dissatisfaction, perceptions of their own child's AD/HD behavior, and the recreational contexts in which parents interact with their children were associated with parents' perceptions of an unfamiliar child's AD/HD behavior. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed.

Additional Information

Publication
Dissertation
Language: English
Date: 2012
Keywords
ADHD, Child Gender, Fathers, Informant Gender, Mothers, Parent Ratings
Subjects
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
Attention-deficit-disordered children
Hyperactive children
Parents

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