Alexander, Charlotte Marie A/P Ambrose
(2018)
Predictors of maternal psychological distress among mothers of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Masters thesis, Universiti Sains Malaysia.
Abstract
Background: The American Psychiatric Association estimates a prevalence of four to six
percent of the population of children to suffer from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity
Disorder (ADHD). According to the National Institute of Public Health, a prevalence of
3.8% of Kelantan population of children suffer from disorders of hyperactivity. The
difficult bidirectional interaction between parent and child create many conflicts. The
occurrence of maternal stress, depressive and anxiety symptoms have been identified,
with limited exploration of this reservoir of distress in the local population. Little is
known about the role of social support among mothers of ADHD children.
Objectives: This study aims to identify the presence of psychological distress among
mothers of ADHD children, and to determine predictors of maternal psychological
distress.
Methods: This is a cross-sectional study that involved 100 mothers of ADHD children
whose children attended outpatient child psychiatry clinic follow-up at Hospital
Universiti Sains Malaysia, Kelantan, from 1st November 2016 until 30th June 2017. These
children were clinically diagnosed to have ADHD according to the DSM-5 criteria and
ranged between the ages of 2 to 18 years. All mothers who fulfilled selection criteria, and
granted consent were provided with a socio-demographic and clinical information form,
and two self-report questionnaires, namely Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale 21 and
Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. A clinician-rated Children’s Global
Assessment Scale was used to assess severity of ADHD.Results: A spectrum of maternal psychological distress was identified, whereby 53% of
mothers reported depressive symptoms, 54% of mothers experienced anxiety symptoms
and 39% of mothers reported stress symptoms. ADHD symptoms severity was
significantly associated with all three psychological domains, with p<0.001 respectively.
Similarly, perceived social support from family represented a significant predictor of
overall maternal psychological distress, with p<0.001 in all three domains of depression,
anxiety and stress. Other factors associated with depressive symptoms include race
(p=0.036) and absence of other caretakers (p=0.006).
Conclusion: This study identified overall maternal psychological distress among mothers
of ADHD children in a local setting in Kelantan with depressive and anxiety symptoms
recording the highest level. ADHD symptom severity, perceived social support from
family, absence of other caretakers and race were identified as predictors of maternal
psychological distress. This study suggests the need for psychological distress screening
among mothers of ADHD children. More research should be garnered about the
protective role of social support among these mothers.
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