Maternal Parenting Style and Internalizing and ADHD Symptoms in College Students

Abstract

The purpose of the current study was to test for a relation between emerging adult Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) status, how they reported being reared (i.e., perceived parenting style), and how the maternal parenting they received in childhood was linked with current adjustment. College students completed online surveys regarding their ADHD status, impairment, and maternal parenting style. Participants with ADHD reported higher levels of maternal authoritarian parenting (controlling/punitive) and lower levels of maternal authoritative parenting (structured/supportive) compared with participants without ADHD. Across the entire sample, higher reported maternal authoritative parenting was associated with lower levels of inattention (IA), hyperactivity/impulsivity (HI), depression, anxiety and stress, and higher levels of maternal authoritarian and permissive parenting was associated with higher levels of IA, HI, depression, anxiety, and stress. Sex moderated the relations between maternal parenting style and psychopathology such that women who reported low levels of authoritative parenting also reported higher levels of symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress, where no differences in psychopathology were found in men across both low and high levels of authoritative parenting. These links between current adjustment and maternal parenting style suggest authoritative parenting may protect against negative adjustment in college students and may be especially important for women.