Parenting Practices in Families of Children With Comorbid ADHD and Anxiety Disorders: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Isabelle Denis, Laurie Côté, Stéphane Turcotte and 1 others
PMID 41405384WHAT IT FOUND
Families of children with both ADHD and anxiety showed more overprotective parenting and less positive engagement than those with ADHD alone.
No difference was found in harsh or inconsistent discipline. This suggests targeting anxiety-specific family dynamics rather than general behavior management.
Key findings
01Parents of children with comorbid ADHD and anxiety used significantly more anxiety-related parenting practices (such as overprotection and excessive control) compared to parents of children with ADHD only.
02Positive parenting practices, such as warmth and involvement, were significantly lower in families of children with comorbid ADHD and anxiety compared to those with ADHD alone.
03There was no significant difference between the two groups in the use of parenting practices typically associated with ADHD, such as coercive or inconsistent discipline.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
Only four studies met the inclusion criteria, resulting in a small sample size. The samples were predominantly Caucasian boys from the United States, limiting generalizability. Parenting practices were assessed primarily by mothers, so findings may not apply to fathers. No comparison group of children with anxiety disorders alone was included in any study. One included study reported only statistically significant results, which may have overestimated differences.
Declared interests
The work was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. No other conflicts of interest were declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the lack of difference in ADHD-related parenting as evidence that discipline strategies are irrelevant. The study compared children with comorbid disorders to those with ADHD only, not to typically developing children, so both groups may have had high levels of inconsistent discipline.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →