‘He's just enthusiastic. Is that such a bad thing?’ Experiences of parents of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Abstract

Parenting a child with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a challenging experience. The hyperactivity, impulsivity and inattention of a child with ADHD often put parenting skills to the test. The present study thus aimed to explore the experiences of parents of children with ADHD in Ireland. Eighteen parents of 7-12-year-old boys with a diagnosis of ADHD took part in open-ended interviews. Thematic analysis was carried out on the interview content. Six major themes were identified: (1) getting your head around ADHD; (2) the child takes over; (3) emotional impact; (4) inconsistency of structural supports; (5) ignorance and discrimination; and (6) it's not all bad. Results are discussed in terms of the need to implement family-centred supports for ADHD. The importance of educating the population at large about ADHD is also discussed. Finally, the need to take a more positive, strengths-based approach to ADHD is highlighted.

Peer Mental Health Stigmatization Scale: psychometric properties of a questionnaire for children and adolescents

“…The items measuring stereotypes, prejudices and discrimination included in the questionnaire have some overlap with qualitative research findings that highlight experiences of stigma reported by young people with mental health problems (e.g. McIntyre & Hennessy, ).…”

The premise, promise and disillusion of the ADHD categorisation – family narrative about the child’s broken school trajectory

“…However, receiving an ADHD diagnosis does not necessarily remove the risk of experiencing stigma. Parents have reported having been stigmatized, isolated and discriminated owing to their child's behaviour regardless of the diagnosis (dosReis et al 2010;McIntyre and Hennessy 2012;Pajo and Cohen 2013;Wong et al 2018). In addition, parents have experienced difficulties collaborating with health care and education systems and being blamed for their children's behaviours by teachers and other professionals despite their child's diagnosis (Frigerio, Montali, and Fine 2013;Pajo and Cohen 2013).…”

Negotiating Parental Accountability in the Face of Uncertainty for Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

“…There have been other limited but emerging qualitative studies outside of North America spanning European contexts, including Ireland (McIntyre & Hennessy, 2012), Norway (Moen, Hall-Lord, & Hedelin, 2011), and England (Dennis, Davis, Johnson, Brooks, & Humbi, 2008), as well as Asian contexts emerging in Taiwan (Lin, Huang, & Huang, 2009) and Hong Kong (Ho, Chien, & Wang, 2011). Diagnoses of ADHD in Asian contexts are high and resemble those of North American contexts.…”

“…Common themes from this emerging literature demonstrate the high primary caregiver burden experienced in parenting a child with ADHD, and competing explanatory models held by parents to those of medical ones (e.g., Dennis et al, 2008; Lin et al, 2009). Concealment of the child’s ADHD also emerged in some of these contexts where ADHD was less well known and there was cultural skepticism (e.g., McIntyre & Hennessy, 2012).…”

“…Within the emerging qualitative research context, a diagnosis of ADHD and medical explanation was considered to lessen parental blame and thus was seen as beneficial (e.g., Danforth & Navarro, 2001; McIntyre & Hennessy, 2012; Moen et al, 2011). In contrast, other authors have argued that parental blame was more persistent and that a diagnosis was limited overall (Bull & Whelan, 2006; Harborne et al, 2004; Peters & Jackson, 2009; Singh, 2004).…”