(PS1-69) Investigating the Influence of Parental ADHD and Emotion Dysregulation on Parenting Practices

Abstract: Poster

Title: Investigating the Influence of Parental ADHD and Emotion Dysregulation on Parenting Practices

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and difficulties with emotion regulation are uniquely associated with parenting practices, specifically challenges in recognizing children’s emotional responses as well as harsh parenting (Woods et al., 2019). Both maternal and paternal ADHD symptoms have been linked to inconsistent discipline and chaos within the home (Mokrova et al., 2010). Notably, parental emotion regulation strategies are linked to the development of children’s emotion regulation strategies pointing to greater clinical implications (Rutherford, 2015). The current study seeks to investigate whether parental ADHD and emotion regulation strategies influence parenting practices.

Participants included 64 parents of children with varying levels of ADHD and irritability, characterized by severe temper outbursts. The sample was primarily White (50%) and Black or African American (23.4%) and 29.69% identified as Hispanic or Latino. Parental ADHD symptoms were assessed using the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS-v1.1), an 18-item questionnaire used to measure ADHD symptomatology (Kessler et al., 2005). Parental emotion regulation was measured through the 36-item Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) (Gratz & Roemer, 2004). The Parent Practices Interview (PPI), a 72-item self-report questionnaire was administered to assess 7 subscales of parenting, including harsh discipline, harsh for age, appropriate discipline, inconsistent discipline, positive parenting, monitoring, and clear expectations rated on a 7-point scale ranging from 1 (never) to 7 (always) (Webster-Stratton et al., 2001).

Preliminary analyses were conducted to examine bivariate associations between parent ADHD and emotion regulation measures and parenting practices and expectations. Parental expectations were negatively correlated with parental ASRS total scores (r = -.543, p < .001) and DERS total scores (r = -.315, p = .016). Harsh discipline was positively correlated with DERS total scores (r = .281, p = .033) but not ASRS total scores (r = .140, p = ns). When entered together into linear regression models together, DTS Total scores were found to uniquely predict harsh discipline (B = .323, t = 2.56, p = .013) while ASRS Total scores uniquely predicted child expectations (B = -.042, t = -4.461, p < .001). Additional analyses examining subscales of the DERS as well as specific types of ADHD symptoms will be conducted to further disentangle the unique impact of parent ADHD and emotion dysregulation on parenting practices.