Parental Involvement in Education and Academic Achievement in Adolescents With Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between parental involvement in education (PIE) and adolescent academic achievement in 99 adolescents with and without ADHD. PIE was measured by two parent-report questionnaires. A standardized test was used to measure academic achievement. Adolescent ADHD status predicted academic achievement. Maternal PIE did not predict adolescent achievement over and above adolescent ADHD status. Fathers’ self-efficacy, supportive involvement, and aspirations moderated the association between adolescent ADHD status and adolescent achievement. These PIE variables were positively associated with achievement in adolescents with ADHD. Paternal self-efficacy was not associated with achievement in adolescents without ADHD, and paternal supportive involvement and paternal aspirations predicted lower achievement in these adolescents. These results suggest the importance of paternal involvement in the learning of adolescents with ADHD and have implications for involving fathers in interventions aimed at improving their academic achievement.

Keywords

adolescents ADHD achievement parental involvement fathers

Adolescents with ADHD exhibit significant academic impairment. Compared to typically developing adolescents, they have lower scores on standardized reading, writing, and mathematics tests (i.e., academic achievement). They have higher than average rates of grade retention, obtain lower grades, have challenges with organization, planning, and time management, and are more likely to be suspended from school and receive special education services (i.e., academic performance). They are also less likely to complete high school or to pursue post-secondary education (i.e., academic attainment; see Evans et al., 2020; Frazier et al., 2007 for review). The academic impairment of adolescents with ADHD is associated with their ADHD symptoms (inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity) with inattention being the most significant predictor of academic achievement (Evans et al., 2020; Frazier et al., 2007). In addition, 30% to 50% of adolescents with ADHD have co-occurring learning disabilities (Larson et al., 2011). Parent involvement is a strong predictor of their children’s academic achievement, performance, and attainment (Jeynes, 2005, 2007). Although parenting behaviors such as warmth are associated with lower levels of internalizing and externalizing behaviors in adolescents with ADHD (Wiener, 2020), there is limited research on the extent to which parenting is associated with their academic achievement. Consequently, the overall purpose of this study was to investigate the association of parent involvement in education and academic achievement in adolescents with ADHD.

The Association of Parental Involvement in Education (PIE) and Achievement

PIE is a multidimensional construct that includes a wide range of parent characteristics and behaviors, but broadly refers to parent participation in the educational processes and experiences of their children (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2005; Ryan & Adams, 1995). As described by Musabelliu (2020), the current study was informed by a hybrid of two theoretical models of PIE; the Model of the Parental Involvement Process (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2009) and the Family-School Relationships Model (Ryan & Adams 1995). Parents who have high levels of self-efficacy with regard to supporting their children’s learning are more likely to model effective learning strategies, encourage their children’s effort, and provide instruction when requested (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2005). Two important dimensions of PIE, supportive and controlling behaviors, have been consistently linked to children’s social, academic, and psychological adjustment (Grolnick & Pomerantz, 2009; Ryan & Adams, 1995). Supportive involvement enhances engagement in schoolwork, academic achievement, and social and emotional adjustment (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2005; Jeynes, 2005), whereas controlling involvement is typically associated with lower achievement and social and emotional adjustment (Pomerantz et al., 2005; Ryan & Adams, 1995; Wiener, 2020).

During adolescence, children’s needs for support with learning changes, and these needs are associated with changes in PIE (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2009). There are several reasons for these changes including adolescents’ development of independent study skills, their increased ability to problem-solve and make decisions (Falbo et al., 2001), and their desire for autonomy; they often have little desire for their parents to be engaged in school activities or supervise their academic work (Seginer, 2006). During adolescence, parents’ aspirations for their children’s achievement become a predominant aspect of PIE (Jeynes, 2007, 2015). Parents’ communication of their aspirations is more strongly linked to achievement than are other forms of PIE (Hill & Tyson, 2009; Kim & Hill, 2015; Park & Holloway, 2013).

Although most research on PIE has focused on mothers, limited existing research indicates that fathers’ PIE is also important (Jeynes, 2015; Kim & Hill, 2015; Whitney et al., 2018). Whereas mothers tend to be more frequently involved in all aspects of their children’s educational activities (i.e., homework help and school activities) and tend to be warmer and more supportive than fathers (Rogers et al., 2009), fathers are more likely to expose their children to the outside world and to use challenging and cognitively stimulating strategies (Paquette, 2004).

PIE and ADHD

Studies comparing PIE beliefs and behaviors of parents of children and adolescents with and without ADHD showed that parents of children (Rogers et al., 2009a) and adolescents (Musabelliu et al., 2018) with ADHD had lower self-efficacy in relation to their ability to help their children academically than parents whose children did not have an ADHD diagnosis. While mothers of children with and without ADHD did not differ with regard to their self-reported PIE behaviors (Rogers et al., 2009a), mothers of adolescents with ADHD reported that they felt they were less supportive and held lower aspirations for their adolescents’ achievement compared to mothers of typically developing adolescents (Musabelliu et al., 2018). Fathers of children with ADHD reported lower levels of supportive involvement but put more pressure on them to succeed than parents of children without ADHD (Rogers et al., 2009a). No differences were found between fathers of adolescents with and without ADHD in relation to their PIE behaviors (Musabelliu et al., 2018). There were also no differences between adolescents with and without ADHD in their reports of their parents’ PIE behaviors (Musabelliu et al., 2018).

Researchers examined the extent to which PIE was associated with child ADHD symptoms, academic impairment as measured by standardized achievement tests, school grades, and overall impairment in college. In these studies, child inattention was associated with higher parenting stress and controlling PIE behaviors (Rogers et al., 2009b), lower self-efficacy for PIE (Ferretti et al., 2019), and lower child academic achievement (Ferretti et al., 2019; Rogers et al., 2009b; Shelleby & Ogg, 2020). Post-secondary students with and without ADHD experienced less impairment when their parents had been more involved in their education during high school (Howard et al., 2016).

Although the above findings suggest that PIE is important with regard to children and adolescents with ADHD, they also raise two questions. First, it is not clear whether academic achievement of adolescents with ADHD is associated with PIE. Second, none of the studies investigating the association between PIE and academic achievement in adolescents with and without ADHD differentiated between maternal and paternal involvement.

Research Question and Hypotheses

The research question investigated in the current study was whether maternal and paternal PIE was associated with adolescent academic achievement in adolescents with and without ADHD. In accordance with previous research and the hybrid of the Hoover-Dempsey et al. (2009) and Ryan and Adams (1995) models, we hypothesized that maternal and paternal self-efficacy, aspirations for their children’s achievement, and supportive behaviors would be associated with higher academic achievement and maternal and paternal controlling behaviors would be associated with lower adolescent academic achievement. Due to findings with younger children that child inattention was associated with PIE variables and academic achievement (Ferretti et al., 2019; Rogers et al., 2009b; Shelleby & Ogg, 2020), we expected that ADHD status would moderate the relationships between PIE and achievement.

Methodology

Participants

The adolescent sample consisted of 99 adolescents, ages 13 to 18, 55 of whom (35 male, 20 female) met study criteria for ADHD and 44 of whom (23 male, 21 female) met study criteria for a comparison sample of adolescents without ADHD. The parent sample consisted of 97 mothers (53 of adolescents with ADHD and 44 of comparison adolescents) and 79 fathers (42 of adolescents with ADHD and 37 of comparison adolescents). The participants lived in a large culturally and linguistically diverse urban area in Canada.

The adolescent participants had average intellectual ability (IQ ≥ 80) as assessed by the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI; Wechsler, 1999). Parents of the participants in the ADHD sample reported that their children had previously received an ADHD diagnosis from a psychologist or physician based on DSM-5 criteria (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). The Parent, Teacher, and Self-Report versions of the Conners-Third Edition (Conners, 2008) were used to confirm ADHD symptoms at the time of the study. Participants were classified as having ADHD if they had at least one parent rating within the clinically significant range (T-score ≥ 70) on the DSM-IV Inattentive or DSM-IV Hyperactive/Impulsive scales or if they had at least borderline ratings on one of these scales (T-score ≥ 65) by a parent and a second reporter (teacher or self-report). Adolescents without ADHD were required to have parent ratings in the average range (T-score ≤ 60) or all scores below the borderline range (T-score ≤ 64) on both teacher and parent ratings.

There were no significant differences between adolescents with and without ADHD in the proportion of males and females χ² (1, N = 99) = 1.30, p = .25. There were no age differences, but adolescents with ADHD had lower IQ and academic achievement scores and higher ADHD symptom scores than adolescents without ADHD (Table 1). As is commonly the case with an ADHD sample (Becker & Fogelman, 2020; Larson et al., 2011), 67% of the adolescents with ADHD (n = 37) had one or more parent-reported comorbid diagnoses (Learning Disabilities: n = 35; Oppositional Defiant or Conduct Disorder: n = 2; Anxiety or Depressive Disorders: n = 9). Of the adolescents without ADHD, 18% (n = 7) had one or more parent-reported diagnoses (Learning Disabilities: n = 7; Anxiety or depressive disorder: n = 1). Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders and Tourette’s Disorder were excluded. Of the adolescents with ADHD, 39 (71%) were taking psychostimulant medication to manage their ADHD symptoms.

Table 1.

Description of the Adolescent and Parent Samples.

	ADHD			Non-ADHD			t (df)	p-Value
	n	M	SD	n	M	SD	t (df)	p-Value
Adolescents
Age	55	15.15	1.48	44	15.00	1.66	.46 (97)	.65
WASI IQ	55	106.35	11.75	44	110.7	9.11	2.02 (97)	.05
Conners-3 (t-score)
Parent DSM-IV inattentive	55	80.38	8.46	44	48.27	6.27	2.97 (97)	.000
Parent DSM-IV H/I^a	55	80.64	10.22	44	47.93	5.78	20.17 (88)	.000
Teacher DSM-IV inattentive	42	61.88	12.28	38	51.97	11.06	3.78 (78)	.000
Teacher DSM-IV H/I	41	60.07	13.93	38	52.87	13.48	2.33 (77)	.02
Self DSM-IV inattentive	55	65.24	10.72	44	54.51	11.61	4.73 (96)	.000
Self DSM-IV H/I	55	63.89	12.58	44	52.72	11.03	4.60 (96)	.000
WJ-III achievement^b								p (d)
Brief achievement	55	99.31	13.09	44	106.89	10.76	−3.09 (97)	.003(−.63)
Brief reading	55	98.05	13.44	44	104.52	11.60	−2.53 (97)	.013 (−.51)
Brief writing	55	98.80	15.09	44	108.59	11.65	−3.54 (97)	.018 (−.72)
Brief mathematics	55	94.62	17.22	44	102.55	14.99	−2.41 (97)	.001(−.49)
Parents								p Value
Mother age in years	53	48.02	4.38	44	47.20	4.44	.91 (95)	.37
Father age in years	42	50.10	5.80	37	48.86	5.53	.96 (77)	.34
Highest parent education^c	43	8.72	1.37	38	8.87	1.36	.49 (79)	.63
Mother years in Canada	19	24.89	12.45	21	23.67	12.41	.31(38)	.75
Father years in Canada	17	26.94	16.10	19	26.05	14.76	.17 (34)	.86

H/I: Hyperactive/impulsive.

Standard Score.

Highest Parent Education refers to the level of educational attainment of the parent that is highest of the two parents and is a measure of socio-economic status. It was coded on an 11-point scale as follows: 1 = no schooling, 2 = 1 to 3 years of schooling; 3 = 4 to 6 years of schooling; 4 = some secondary school; 5 = completed secondary school, 6 = some college, 7 = completed college, 8 = some university, 9 = completed undergraduate degree, 10 to 11 = graduate education.

There were no significant differences between parents of participants with and without ADHD in marital status (married/common-law: ADHD, n = 42, Non-ADHD, n = 38; separated/divorced: ADHD, n = 11, Non-ADHD, n = 4; or single/widowed: ADHD, n = 2, Non-ADHD, n = 2), χ² (2, N = 99) = 1.14, p = .10; languages spoken in the home (English: ADHD, n = 39, Non-ADHD, n = 30; or other: ADHD, n = 15, Non-ADHD, n = 14), χ² (1, N = 99) = .19, p = .66; mothers’ place of birth (Canada: ADHD, n = 36, Non-ADHD, n = 23; or other: ADHD, n = 19, Non-ADHD, n = 21), χ² (1, N = 99) = 1.76, p = .18; fathers’ place of birth (Canada: ADHD, n = 33, Non-ADHD, n = 23; or other: ADHD, n = 20, Non-ADHD, n = 19), χ² (1, N = 95) = 0.54, p = .46. There were no differences between parents of adolescents with and without ADHD in age, parental education, and number of years mothers and fathers of adolescents with ADHD who were not born in Canada lived in Canada since immigration (Table 1).

Measures

The Parental Self-Efficacy scale of the Parent Involvement Project Questionnaire (PIPQ; Hoover-Dempsey & Sandler, 2005) was used to assess mothers’ and fathers’ self-efficacy to support their adolescents’ learning. The questionnaire was modified by replacing the word ‘child’ with ‘son/daughter’ to refer less explicitly to younger children. For each item, parents indicate how true the statement is on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree.” The scale has five items (e.g., “I feel successful about my efforts to help my son/daughter learn”). Studies with data from more than 2,150 parents revealed that the PIPQ is a psychometrically sound measurement tool (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2005; Walker et al., 2005). The internal consistency of the Parental Self-Efficacy scale in the current sample was good (Mothers: Cronbach’s alpha = .81; Fathers: Cronbach’s alpha = .82).

The Parental Support for Learning Scale (PSLS: Rogers et al., 2014) was used to assess mothers’ and fathers’ perception of their PIE behaviors and adolescents’ perceptions of their parents PIE behaviors. Exploratory factor analysis of a short version of the scale that did not include the Aspirations scale revealed a two-factor structure: (1) Supportive Involvement (α = 87 and .89) and (2) Controlling Involvement (α = .90 and .89; Rogers et al., 2018). The Supportive Involvement, Controlling Involvement, and Aspirations scales were used in the present study. For each item, parents indicated how true the statement is on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree. The Supportive Involvement scale consists of 7 items (e.g., “. . .support my son/daughter in school-related choices”), the Controlling Involvement scale consists of 12 items (e.g., “. . .very strict when it comes to my son/daughter school work”), and the Aspirations scale consists of 4 items (e.g., “. . .talk to son/daughter about his/her career goals”). In the current study, in order to improve the internal consistency of the scales, one item from the Supportive Involvement scale and one item from the Aspirations scale were removed for fathers. Following removal of these items, the internal consistency of the scales as measured by Cronbach’s alpha ranged from adequate to very good (Supportive: Mothers—α = .69, Fathers—α = .66; Adolescents for Mother—α = .84, Adolescents for Father—α = .87; Controlling: Mothers—α = .82, Fathers—α = .85, Adolescents for Mother—α = .86, Adolescents for Father—α = .88; Aspirations: Mothers—α = .70, Fathers—α = .57, Adolescents for Mother—α = .72, Adolescents for Father—α = .69).

Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement (WJ-III)

The Brief Achievement (Letter-Word Identification, Calculations, and Spelling subtests), Brief Reading (Letter-Word Identification and Passage Comprehension subtests), Brief Writing (Spelling and Writing Samples subtests), and the Brief Mathematics (Calculations and Applied Problems subtests) scales from the WJ-III were used to measure academic achievement for adolescents in this study (Woodcock et al., 2001). The WJ-III has strong reliability and content, construct, and criterion validity (Woodcock et al., 2001).

Conners Rating Scales

The parent (C3-P), teacher (C3-T), and self-report (C3-SR) versions of the Conners Rating Scale-Third Edition (Conners, 2008) were used to confirm that adolescent ADHD symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity were current. With respect to the current sample, the internal consistency of the two ADHD DSM-IV subscales (DSM-IV Inattentive and DSM-IV Hyperactive/Impulsive) was high for parent and teachers (Parent: α = .95 and .94; Teacher: α = .94 and .95) and good for self-report (Self: α = .86 and .81).

Procedure

The present study was conducted as part of a research project on peer and family relationships of adolescents with ADHD, approved by the Research Ethics Board of the University of Toronto. Participants were recruited through advertisements in community newspapers and websites, physicians’ and psychologists’ offices and children’s mental health centers. Potential participants were contacted by phone and given detailed information about the study. Parents provided demographic information about the family and adolescent diagnoses and completed the Conners 3-P. If adolescents met study eligibility criteria, consent letters and forms explaining the purpose, procedures, potential risks, and benefits associated with the study were mailed to the families. Adolescent participants and their parents provided consent. The Conners 3-SR, and subtests of the WASI and WJ-III were administered to the adolescent participants in an individual testing session at the university psychology clinic by graduate students in school and clinical psychology. Parents completed the PIPQ and PSL using an online platform and provided consent for the Conners 3-T to be sent to one of the adolescents’ teachers. Data were collected over a three-year period (2012–2015).

Data Analysis

The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 24 was used to analyze the data. All of the parents included in the main analyses completed either or both of the PIPQ or PSL. Participants who did not complete one of these key measures were still included in the sample, but they were removed from the analyses involving these measures. There were no significant differences in adolescent Brief Achievement standard score between those whose parents completed both, one or none of the questionnaires (Musabelliu, 2020). Multiple imputation was used to deal with missing data for items on the PIPQ or PSL. Pearson correlations were calculated to examine the relationship between adolescent gender, parent education, the PIE variables, and adolescent academic achievement.

Eight hierarchical multiple regression analyses were performed—four for mothers and four for fathers. The dependent variable for each of the regression analyses was Brief Achievement on the WJ-III. In each regression analysis, adolescent ADHD status was entered in Step 1. We chose ADHD status instead of the Inattentive and Hyperactive-Impulsive scores on the parent, teacher, and self-report versions of the Conners-3 because an ADHD diagnosis is only given if symptoms occur across settings, and if there is academic or social impairment. Furthermore, we did not have sufficient statistical power to include all six scores on the Conners-3 in the regression analyses. Steps 2 and 3 varied depending on which of the four PIE variables were examined. In Step 2, parental self-efficacy, supportive involvement, controlling involvement, and aspirations were separately entered into the model. In Step 3, the interaction term (Adolescent ADHD Status × PIE variable) was entered into the model. Variables in interactions were centered to reduce multicollinearity with other variables (Aiken et al., 1991). This was done using the PROCESS procedure (Hayes, 2013). Thus, eight combinations of interactions between adolescent ADHD status and PIE variables (mothers and fathers) were examined across models, resulting in four models for each parent. Significant interactions were probed using a technique described by Aiken et al. (1991) whereby conditional effects of the main predictor (e.g., fathers’ self-efficacy) were plotted at low and high levels of the moderating variable (adolescent ADHD status).

Results

Table 2 shows the correlations between Brief Academic Achievement, adolescent gender, parent highest level of education, and the PIE variables. Adolescent gender and parent education were not correlated with adolescent achievement. With regard to parent report of PIE, in the total sample, none of the correlations were significant for mothers, and only fathers’ self-efficacy was positively correlated with adolescent academic achievement. In the ADHD sample, fathers’ self-efficacy and aspirations were positively correlated with adolescent achievement; none of the correlations were significant for mothers. In the comparison sample, mothers’ controlling involvement was positively correlated with adolescent academic achievement and mothers’ supportive involvement was negatively correlated with adolescent achievement. Fathers’ supportive involvement and aspirations were negatively correlated with achievement. Adolescent reports of their parents’ PIE behaviors were not correlated with achievement in the total sample and in the samples of adolescents with ADHD and adolescents without ADHD. Consequently, hierarchical regression analyses involving adolescent report are not described below.

Table 2.

Correlations of Maternal and Paternal Involvement Variables With Brief Achievement on the WJ-III in the Overall Sample, ADHD, and Comparison Groups.

	Brief achievement WJ-III
	Total sample		ADHD		Comparison
Parent-reported	Mothers	Fathers	Mothers	Fathers	Mothers	Fathers
	n = 90	n = 71	n = 50	n = 40	n = 39	n = 31
Parent education	.15	.16	.06	.22	.22	.10
Parental self-efficacy	.19	.25*	.10	.34*	−.17	−.28
Supportive involvement	−.04	.17	−.07	.26	−.34*	−.41*
Controlling involvement	.03	.10	−.08	.11	.32*	.24
Aspirations	.00	.16	.03	.33*	−.23	−.40*
Adolescent-reported	N = 99		n = 55		n = 44
Supportive involvement	.01	.15	−.07	.15	.04	.12
Controlling involvement	.02	.06	−.02	.07	.18	.14
Aspirations	−.00	.14	−.03	.17	−.11	−.06
Adolescent gender	−.009		−.02		.097

p < .05.

Table 3 shows the results of hierarchical regression analyses for parent-reported PIE variables with adolescent academic achievement as the dependent variable. Adolescent ADHD status predicted adolescent achievement and remained significant when maternal and paternal PIE variables were entered. None of the maternal or paternal PIE variables (self-efficacy, supportive, controlling, and aspirations) predicted adolescent achievement over and above adolescent ADHD status. For mothers, the ADHD status by PIE variable interaction effects were also not significant. For fathers, however, the ADHD status by PIE variable interaction effects were significant for parental self-efficacy, β = 1.19; t(67) = 2.53; p = .01, supportive behavior, β = 3.33; t(67) = 2.37; p = .02, and aspirations, β = 2.89; t(67) = 2.81; p = .01.

Table 3.

Hierarchical Multiple Regressions Predicting Adolescent Academic Achievement (Parental Report of Self-Efficacy and Involvement Behaviors).

	Mothers						Fathers
	R ²	ΔR²	F (df = 86)	B	SE _B	β	R ²	ΔR²	F (df = 67)	B	SE _B	β
Step 1:Adolescent ADHD status	.13	.13	12.55***				.14	.14	11.07***
Step 1:Adolescent ADHD status				−8.59	2.43	−.35***				−9.42	2.83	−.37***
Step 2a:Adolescent ADHD statusParental self-efficacy	.13	.00	6.23**				.15	.02	6.21***
				−8.33						−8.27	3.00	−.33**
				.29	1.46	.02				1.74	1.53	.14
Step 3a:Adolescent ADHD statusParental self-efficacyAdolescent ADHD status × Parental self-efficacy	.14	.01	4.62**				.23	.07	5.79**
				−26.32	15.73	−1.09				−39.42	12.67	−1.56***
				−2.98	3.17	−.23				−3.26	2.46	−.25
				4.14	3.56	.67				7.75	3.07	1.19**
Step 2b:Adolescent ADHD statusSupportive involvement	.15	.03	7.47***				.15	.01	5.41**
				−9.92	2.58	−.41***				−9.12	3.07	−.35**
				−5.62	3.35	−.18				3.21	3.72	.10
Step 3b:Adolescent ADHD statusSupportive involvementAdolescent ADHD status × Supportive involvement	.16	.01	5.37**				.22	.07	5.76**
				−38.60	26.95	−1.60				−95.98	36.78	−3.73*
				−9.47	4.91	−.30				−15.15	8.54	−.49
				7.18	6.71	1.07				22.30	9.41	3.33*
Step 2c:Adolescent ADHD statusControlling involvement	.13	.01	6.25**				.16	.02	5.85**
				−8.73	2.48	−.36***				−10.02	3.02	−.39**
				1.71	2.08	.08				3.11	2.53	.14
Step 3c:Adolescent ADHD statusControlling involvementAdolescent ADHD status × Controlling involvement	.16	.03	5.27**				.16	.00	3.86*
				9.50	10.78	.39				−7.06	13.73	−.27
				5.61	3.05	.28				3.72	3.75	.17
				−7.18	4.13	−.82				−1.13	5.11	−.13
Step 2d:Adolescent ADHD statusAspirations	.13	.01	6.24**				.15	.01	5.41**
				−8.89	2.52	−.37***				−9.14	3.06	−.36**
				−2.04	2.51	−.08				2.78	3.22	.10
Step 3d:Adolescent ADHD statusAspirationsAdolescent ADHD status × aspirations	.14	.01	4.51**				.25	.10	10.25***
				−30.22	21.09	−1.25				−84.19	26.26	−3.27**
				−4.38	3.40	−.18				−9.65	5.38	−.36
				5.13	5.04	.87				18.36	6.53	2.89**

Note. Mothers: Regression (a), n = 89; Regression (b), (c), and (d), n = 88; Fathers: Regression (a), n = 70; Regression (b), (c), and (d), n = 64.

p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.

Figure 1 displays the plotted interaction effects between adolescent ADHD status and paternal self-efficacy to support their teens’ learning, supportive involvement, and aspirations. Adolescents with ADHD had higher achievement scores when their fathers had high self-efficacy compared to when their fathers had low self-efficacy. Achievement scores of adolescents without ADHD were not related to their fathers’ self-efficacy. Adolescents with ADHD had higher achievement scores when their fathers were more supportive and had higher aspirations for them whereas fathers’ aspirations and supportive involvement were associated with lower academic achievement among adolescents without ADHD.

Figure 1.

Moderation of ADHD status on adolescent academic achievement by (1) paternal self-efficacy, (2) paternal supportive involvement behaviors, and (3) by paternal aspirations.

Discussion

The results of this study constitute an important contribution to the research regarding parental involvement in the learning of adolescents with ADHD. Consistent with existing research showing that adolescents with ADHD typically have considerable academic impairment (Evans et al., 2020; Frazier et al., 2007), ADHD status was a significant predictor of academic achievement accounting for approximately 14% of the variance. There were differences between mothers and fathers with respect to the associations between their PIE and the academic achievement of their adolescent children with ADHD. Mothers’ PIE did not predict adolescent academic achievement over and above adolescent ADHD status, nor were the interactions between adolescent ADHD status and the PIE variables significant. Paternal self-efficacy, supportive involvement and aspirations for their children’s achievement also did not predict adolescent achievement over and above adolescent ADHD status. Adolescent ADHD status, however, moderated the relationship between paternal self-efficacy, supportive involvement behavior, aspirations, and adolescent academic achievement. Paternal self-efficacy, supportive involvement and aspirations were positively associated with academic achievement in their adolescents with ADHD. In adolescents without ADHD, however, paternal self-efficacy was not associated with adolescent academic achievement and paternal supportive involvement and aspirations were negatively associated with academic achievement. The findings from this study provided only partial support for the hybrid of the Model of the Parental Involvement Process (Hoover-Dempsey et al., 2009) and the Family-School Relationships Model (Ryan & Adams, 1995). The results of the analyses with regard to fathers of adolescents with ADHD support the hypotheses whereas the results for mothers and the comparison sample were not consistent with these models.

The findings suggest that during adolescence, fathers’ involvement in the education of their adolescents with ADHD is a protective factor in relation to their children’s academic achievement. It is likely that in order to achieve, adolescents with ADHD benefit from their fathers’ support. Adolescents without ADHD, however, may no longer require ongoing support with school work because they have acquired the skills to work independently (Falbo et al., 2001; Seginer, 2006). The protective aspect of fathers’ PIE was also shown in studies conducted with fathers of adolescents from economically disadvantaged communities that show that paternal supportive involvement is positively related to adolescent academic achievement. (Gordon, 2016; Jeynes, 2015). Consequently, it is likely that paternal supportive involvement in the education of at-risk adolescents in general is important.

An important question raised by the results of this study is why paternal PIE is associated with achievement in adolescents with ADHD whereas maternal PIE is not. This is perplexing because Al-Yagon (2016) found that in families of adolescents with learning disabilities and adolescents with learning disabilities and ADHD, close mother-adolescent relationships are associated with more positive and fewer negative social, emotional, and behavioral outcomes than close father-adolescent relationships. There are a few possible reasons for this contradiction. First, Al-Yagon did not examine the association between parent-adolescent relationships and academic achievement. Second, relationships between adolescents with ADHD and their parents are often characterized by high levels of conflict and one of the key issues they argue about is school performance and achievement (Markel & Wiener, 2014). This is likely due to the low achievement of adolescents with ADHD and their problems with organization, planning, and time management (e.g., Frazier et al., 2007; Langberg et al., 2013). Although mothers’ attributions for these conflicts were not associated with frequency of conflict, Markel and Wiener (2014) found that fathers of adolescents with ADHD who believed that the conflicts did not occur in many situations and were not likely to continue over time reported fewer arguments with their adolescent children. Fathers with these attributions may overlap with those who support their adolescents’ learning. Furthermore, Musabelliu et al. (2018) found no differences between fathers of adolescents with and without ADHD with regard to their PIE behaviors. Mothers of adolescents with ADHD, however, reported lower levels of supportive involvement and aspirations than did mothers of adolescents without ADHD. This may be connected to parenting stress and depressive symptoms among these mothers (Biondic et al., 2019; Wiener, 2020; Wiener et al., 2016). As suggested by adolescents with ADHD who participated in a qualitative study, their mothers may have felt that they can no longer be helpful with regard to their teens’ learning (Wiener & Daniels, 2016).

In this study, PIE behaviors were assessed using parent-report and adolescent-report. Adolescent reports of their parents’ supportive and controlling behaviors and their aspirations for their achievement were not correlated with their academic achievement as measured on the WJ-III whereas parent reports were associated with achievement. There are a few possible reasons for this finding. With younger children, PIE typically entails activities such as teaching them concepts, helping them with homework, praising them, and communicating with teachers. The PIE behaviors with adolescents may be less overt. Encouragement, for example, may involve a subtle nonverbal communication. Adolescents may also feel that parents’ attempts to be supportive or to convey positive aspirations regarding their achievement are controlling. Future studies would be needed to understand this finding.

Parental controlling involvement was not associated with academic achievement of adolescents with ADHD nor did ADHD status moderate the association between controlling involvement and achievement for mothers or fathers. In general, parental controlling involvement is associated with lower achievement in children (Pomerantz et al., 2005). The absence of an association between controlling involvement and achievement in adolescents with ADHD may be because the items on this scale combine a few aspects of control including pressure and disapproval (e.g., “I try to make my son/daughter feel guilty when he/she does poorly at school”), punitive reactions (e.g., “If my son/daughter’s grades are not good enough, I will restrict his/her free time or take away usual privileges”), and structure (e.g., “I generally keep track of my son/daughter’s assignments and homework”). Adolescents with ADHD may benefit from the structure that some parents provide, but pressure and punishment may be counter-productive (Grolnick & Pomerantz, 2009).

This study highlighted the important role that fathers have in the education of adolescents with ADHD. Nevertheless, the study has some limitations. The small sample size was a limitation for several reasons, First, it did not allow for the inclusion of all of the PIE variables in the same hierarchical regression analyses. Consequently, it was not possible to examine the relative contribution of parental self-efficacy and PIE behaviors. Second, it was not possible to include adolescent self-report, parent report, and teacher report of the adolescents’ inattention and hyperactivity in the regression analyses as separate variables. As a result, it is not clear whether inattention or hyperactivity was the key predictor of their achievement. However, an ADHD diagnosis involves more than just symptoms. DSM-5 requires that the symptoms occur across settings and involve functional impairment. Consequently, using ADHD diagnosis as a variable for these analyses might be advantageous. Although it might be argued that the correlations between the maternal PIE variables and adolescent achievement and between adolescent reports of their parents’ PIE and their achievement are not significant due to low statistical power, the magnitude of these correlations is sufficiently low that it this interpretation is not likely valid.

There are a few additional limitations. The reliability of the Aspirations scale of the PSL in the current sample of fathers was low; the measure was included in the analyses, however, due to the importance of fathers’ perspectives. A large proportion of the adolescents with ADHD had a diagnosis of learning disabilities according to parent report. It is therefore possible that the low achievement of the adolescents with ADHD was partly driven by co-occurring learning disabilities. Finally, future studies should have a longitudinal design that would allow for testing causal effects of parent involvement variables on adolescent academic achievement.

Relevance to the Practice of School Psychology

The results of this study have important implications for psychologists and educators who work with adolescents with ADHD and their families. Parenting interventions with children and adolescents with ADHD have typically included mothers because they are usually more involved with children in daily activities and are responsible for most of the caregiving (e.g., Houle et al., 2017). However, this study showed that fathers’ PIE is associated with higher achievement of their adolescents with ADHD. Thus, it would likely be helpful for fathers to participate actively in treatment programs aimed at improving adolescent organizational skills, time management, and planning, which have been linked to academic achievement in adolescents with ADHD. There are several well-validated interventions that foster these skills in adolescents with ADHD and that include parents in the treatment. As reviewed by Evans et al. (2020), Fabiano and Pyle (2019), and Wiener and Bedard (2021), these include the Homework, Organization and Planning Skills program (HOPS; Langberg et al., 2018), the Challenging Horizons Program (CHP; Schultz & Evans, 2015), and the Supporting Teens’ Autonomy Daily program (STAND; Sibley et al., 2014). Although not explicitly examined in studies evaluating the HOPS, CHP, and STAND programs, it is possible that including fathers in these interventions might be associated with enhanced paternal self-efficacy, supportive involvement behaviors, aspirations for their children’s achievement, and higher adolescent achievement.

Footnotes

Author Note

Results from this study are part of a doctoral dissertation and have not been presented in conferences or workshops.

Declaration of Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This study was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (410-2010-1763).

ORCID iDs

Gladiola Musabelliu

Judith Wiener

Author Biographies

Gladiola Musabelliu is a School and Clinical Child Psychologist in Ontario, Canada working at the Toronto Catholic District School Board. She conducts psychological assessments and provides individual counselling to high school students as well as consultation for parents and teachers regarding mental health and learning challenges. Her doctoral research at OISE/University of Toronto focused on parents’ involvement in the education of adolescents with ADHD.

Judith Wiener is Professor Emerita of School and Clinical Child Psychology at OISE/ University of Toronto. Her research is on the self-perceptions, family and social relationships of children and adolescents with learning disabilities and ADHD. She is a registered psychologist in Ontario, Canada. She has published over 100 book chapters and journal articles and co-authored a book with Dr. Esther Geva entitled “Psychological assessment of culturally and linguistically diverse children and adolescents: A Practitioner’s Guide”.

Maria Rogers is an Associate Professor and Clinical Psychologist at the University of Ottawa and Canada Research Chair in Child and Youth Mental Health and Well-Being at Carlton University. She has a broad interest in the social-emotional and academic development of youth with ADHD and is particularly interested in how parents and teachers interact with children with ADHD regarding learning and school-related issues. The overarching goal of her most recent research program is to bring together child development—mental health and education.

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