Psychosocial treatments for preschool‐aged children with Attention‐Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Abstract

This article reviews the research literature on psychosocial treatments for preschool-aged children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in the context of the developmental and contextual needs of this population (e.g., increased parenting demands, differences in classroom structure, and the child's emerging developmental capacities). Discussion of the findings and limitations of existing studies is provided for parent-training approaches, classroom management strategies, and multimodal treatments. Although the empirical base is quite small for ADHD-specific samples, parent-training interventions have the greatest overall support for improving behavioral outcomes, with a variety of different approaches having shown effectiveness. Very few studies of classroom management and multimodal interventions have been conducted in this age group; however, initial data show promising results for teacher training and consultation interventions. The body of research suggests that the most effective treatments for clinical samples of preschoolers with ADHD and their families may be individually delivered, developmentally appropriate, and multimodal.

Severity of Children’s ADHD Symptoms and Parenting Stress: A Multiple Mediation Model of Self-Regulation

“…For example, while pharmacological treatment reduces children's ADHD symptoms, elevated levels of parenting stress persist and are similar to parents of children with ADHD who are not on medication (Johnson and Reader 2002). Similarly, psychosocial treatments for ADHD and comorbid defiant/aggressive behaviors tend to focus on changing parents' discipline strategies and/or interaction style (LaForett et al 2008;Barkley et al 1992), and not necessarily addressing specific parental stressors. Hence, it is critical for clinicians to monitor parenting stress throughout treatment and not necessarily end treatment just because the child's ADHD symptoms have been addressed.…”

Preschool children's response to behavioural parent training and parental predictors of outcome in routine clinical care

“…Behavioral parent training (BPT) is a first-line treatment for preschool children with disruptive behaviours (Charach, Carson, Fox, Ali, Beckett, & Lim, 2013;Comer, Chow, Chan, Cooper-Vince, & Wilson, 2013;LaForett, Murray, & Kollins, 2008;Mulqueen, Bartley, & Bloch, 2013), and its efficacy has been confirmed in meta-analyses (Charach et al, 2013;Comer et al, 2013;Mulqueen et al, 2013;Rimestad, Lambek, Zacher Christiansen, & Hougaard, 2016). BPT aims to decrease disruptive behaviour problems in children by enhancing parenting skills.…”

Mothers of Children With ADHD: Does Employment Help?

“…Another study reported that the economic, psychological, and social benefits of employment for mothers of disabled children rivaled those for employed mothers with non-disabled children (Lewis, Kagan, Heaton, & Cranshaw, 1999). Thus, this study contributed to the literature by exploring the benefits of employment for mothers of children with ADHD, who like children with disabilities, elicit increased parenting responsibilities (LaForett, Murray, & Kollins, 2008).…”