The role of parental psychopathology in friendship among children with AD/HD

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Jenna Louise Mendelson (Creator)
Institution
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
Advisor
Arthur Anastopoulos

Abstract: Impairment to social functioning has been consistently found among children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) with research indicating it extends into adulthood for 30-50% of these individuals (Jackson & Farrujia, 1997). Recent research has found that even a single, high-quality friendship can act as a buffer against the negative outcomes associated with peer rejection (Hodges and Boivin, 1999), and that parents play an especially important role (Frankel 1996, 2003; Frankel & Myatt 2003; Ladd & Hart 1992; Krappman, 1986). However, parents of children with AD/HD have been commonly found to experience psychopathology of their own. (Hechtman, 1996, in Johnson & Mash, 2001; Chronis-Tuscano & Clarke, 2008). The goal of this study was to examine the role of parental psychopathology in the number and quality of friendships of children with AD/HD. Participants in this study included 28 children between the ages of 7-11 and one caregiver. Multiple regression analysesdid not find a significant relation between parental psychopathology and child friendships. However, post-hoc analysesindicated that this study may have been under-powered. Post-hoc analyses also revealed a relation between aggressive behavior and the quality, but not the number, of child friendships.

Additional Information

Publication
Thesis
Language: English
Date: 2012
Keywords
ADHD, Friendship, Parents, Psychopathology
Subjects
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
Attention-deficit-disordered children
Friendship in children $x Psychological aspects

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