Abstract :
This study examined the associations between
symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
and social and school adjustment (academic performance,
peer relationships, school social problems) and themoderating
roles of children’s age and maternal parenting (affection and
overprotection) in these associations. The sample consisted of
2,463 students who were in the first to ninth grade in northern
Taiwan. Results from the linear mixed models demonstrated
that ADHD symptoms were inversely associated with
academic performance and positively associated with social
adjustment problems. Further, children’s age and maternal
parenting moderated the associations between ADHD symptoms
and school and social adjustment. For example, maternal
overprotection moderated the relation between hyperactivity
and negative peer relationships (i.e., difficulty forming and
maintaining friendships), such that this relation was stronger
for children who experienced higher levels of overprotection
than children who did not.Moreover, children’s agemoderated
the association between attention problems and decreased
academic performance, such that this association was stronger
for older children and adolescents than for younger children.
Furthermore, children’s age and maternal affection interacted
to influence the association between attention problems and
school social problems (i.e., bullying, aggression, and peer
rejection) with maternal affection acting as a buffer for older
children (grades 4–6) only. These findings are discussed froma
developmental psychopathology perspective
