A Study of the Effects of Parental Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Parental Emotion Regulation Processes on Adolescent Self-Regulation Skills

Abstract

Self-regulation is a concept that is frequently studied in the literature and is crucial for humans in their capacity as beings with deliberate will. However, there is a lack of research examining ADHD, which is characterized by difficulties in self-regulation and emotion regulation, particularly in terms of adolescent self-regulation skills via parenting practices. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between parents' emotion regulation approaches toward their children and children's self-regulation skills based on a comparison of self-regulation skills in adolescent children of parents who met and did not meet ADHD diagnostic criteria. 572 parents and their 12-15-year-old children took part in the study. The study was designed as a correlational survey model. The data collected from children and their parents who met and did not meet the ADHD diagnostic criteria were compared using the T-test and then subjected to stepwise regression analyses separately. According to the study's findings, the children of parents who met the diagnostic criteria had lower self-regulation success scores than those who did not. The study discovered that avoidance and orientation to a child's emotions by parents who met ADHD diagnostic criteria were determinants of self-regulation failure. Another finding from the study was that avoidance of emotions by parents who met the ADHD diagnostic criteria was negatively related to self-regulation success. The findings for parents who did not meet ADHD diagnostic criteria revealed that no emotion regulation approach of such parents had a significant contribution to self-regulation failure, whereas the emotion orientation approach had a positive and significant contribution to adolescents' self-regulation success. Finally, the study discusses the findings in light of previous research findings and makes some recommendations for future work.