Mother-child interaction and externalizing disorders in elementary schoolchildren.
Trautmann-Villalba P, Gerhold M, Polowczyk M, Dinter-Jorg M, Laucht M, Esser G, Schmidt MH.
Klinik fur Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie des Kindes- und Jugendalters, Zentralinstituts fur Seelische Gesundheit in Mannheim.
OBJECTIVES: The behavior of eight-year-old children with externalizing disorders (ADHD and CD) in interaction with their mothers was examined. METHODS/RESULTS: Mothers of ADHD children were more restrictive and negative towards their children and showed less adequate control than did mothers of normal children. ADHD children paid less attention, were less assertive and helpless, and were more impulsive than controls. CD children were more negative towards their mothers, and were more aggressive and provocative than normal children, while their mothers were more impatient. CONCLUSIONS: An interaction between aggressive child behavior and maternal restrictiveness contributed to increased conduct problems. Hyperactivity was enhanced by the interaction between the impulsive behavior of the child and the aversive maternal response.