Parent cognitions as predictors of child treatment response in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

Using a subsample of 105 children and their parents (100 mothers, 57 father s) from the Multimodal Treatment Study of Children with ADHD (the MTA), the value of parents' baseline cognitions as predictors of children's treatmen t outcome at 14 months was examined. Measures of parents' cognitions about themselves, their ADHD children, and their parenting, as well as a self-rep ort measure of dysfunctional discipline were included. Both mothers' and fa thers' self-reported use of dysfunctional discipline predicted worse child treatment outcome. Low self-esteem in mothers, low parenting efficacy in fa thers, and Fathers' attributions of noncompliance to their ADHD child's ins ufficient effort and bad mood also were associated with worse child treatme nt outcome. All of these predictive relations were obtained even after MTA treatment effects had been taken into account. Secondary analyses indicated that mothers had a more external locus of control, lower self-esteem lower parenting efficacy, and a greater tendency to attribute noncompliance to t heir ADHD child's bad mood than did fathers.