A person’s attachment style develops based on the  interactions they had as an infant with their primary care giver.  To develop a secure attachment, the caregiver must be sensitive and responsive to the child’s needs and signals.  The classic symptoms of ADHD, such as inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, run counter to the skills necessary for effective parenting (Murray, 2004). 

Inattentive

            High levels of inattention drastically reduce a parent’s ability to monitor a child’s behavior or help them with homework.  Murray (2008) studied sixty women and their children between the ages of 8 and 14, using a series of self-reports and laboratory measures designed to measure maternal monitoring of child behavior and consistency in parenting.  She found that mother’s with ADHD monitored their children less, had fewer routines and were less able to report their child’s activities over the last 24 hours.  A lack of parental monitoring is linked to higher rates of injury in toddlers, poor academic performance in school, and higher rates of risky behaviors in adolescents.  Murray also found that mothers with ADHD were significantly more inconsistent in both discipline and laxness.  Inattentive parents also struggle to provide structure in their child’s life.  When a parent is inattentive, they easily forget they put a child in time-out or fail to notice if a child does not follow instructions. 

Impulsive

            High levels of hyperactivity or impulsivity drastically reduce a parent’s ability to listen to a child talk about their day, maintain daily routines or enforce household rules.   Because parents with ADHD have fewer daily routines, they have fewer opportunities to gather information from their children (Murray, 2008).  Treating a child’s ADHD with medication is difficult if the parent administering the daily medication is unable to follow a daily routine.  A study by Arnold, O’Leary and Edwards (1997) investigated the impacts of ADHD on the parenting style of fathers.  They found that fathers with high ADHD symptoms were more like to have over-reactive discipline styles. 

Impact on the Behavior of a Child

            A child, who is genetically inclined to having ADHD and is interacting with a parent with untreated ADHD, may be especially at risk to develop ADHD - genetically and through the family environment.  A major part of handling a child with ADHD involves setting limits, realizing when a child misbehaves, and remaining calm in disciplining the child (Banks, 1999). 

            Minde, Eakin, Hechtman, Ocha, Bouffard, Greenfield, and Looper (2003) studied the psychosocial functioning of 23 spouses and 63 children of 33 families with an ADHD parent compared with a control group of 26 families.  They used diagnostic interviews, intellectual testing, and self-report measure to evaluate the adults and diagnostic interview, teacher report forms, intelligence and achievement testing, and social functioning inventory to evaluate the children.  The study found that non-ADHD children who had one healthy parent and one ADHD parent exhibit less problematic behaviors than children raised without a non-ADHD parent.  

            Banks studied eighty-two mothers of children between the ages of 3 and 6.  He evaluated participants with a demographic questionnaire and eight standardized measures.  The study found mothers with high ADHD symptoms were more likely to report lower parenting self-esteem and less effective disciplinary styles, compared with mothers with low ADHD symptoms. 

            Evans, Vallano, and Pelham (1994) provide a case study in which a mother sought help because she could not control her 6-year-old, ADHD son.  An evaluation revealed that the mother had ADHD.  As it turns out, the mother’s own ADHD symptoms interfered with her implementation of strategies she learned at parent training classes.  Following stimulant medication treatment for her symptoms, the mother reported an improvement in her parenting behaviors and in her son’s behavior (although he had not received medication).  She also reported feeling more successful and competent in her parenting when taking the medication.  

            A child with ADHD has very little impact on the psychological health of the parents; however, a parent with ADHD can significantly impact the psychological health of their children.  Due to the genetic link of ADHD, evaluating the parents of a child with ADHD may be essential in treating the child.