Background: Infant temperament predicts harsh parenting, and attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms. Moreover, harsh parenting has consistently been associated with later ADHD symptoms. Across two studies, we tested the interplay between these factors to determine what puts children at risk of harsh parenting.

Methods: Data was analysed using structural equation modelling. Study 1 used secondary data from the longitudinal Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 2860). Infant negative emotionality acted as a predictor. Outcome variables were childhood maltreatment and ADHD symptoms at ages 5 and 9. For study 2, we are currently collecting cross-sectional data from parents with and without a diagnosis of ADHD who have children aged between 6-8 years (recruitment target n=500 per group). Study 1 was unable to control for parental ADHD, emotion regulation difficulties and history of maltreatment. Study 2 addresses these gaps.

Results: Study 1: Infant negative emotionality predicted harsh parenting at ages 5 and 9, and ADHD symptoms at age 5. Age 5 harsh parenting/ ADHD symptoms predicted age 9 ADHD symptoms/ harsh parenting. Both harsh parenting and ADHD symptoms at age 5 mediated the association between negative emotionality and harsh parenting/ ADHD symptoms at age 9. Data collection for study 2 will conclude in April 2025. We hypothesised that parents with (vs without) ADHD will use more harsh parenting techniques, but that this association is moderated by parents’ own maltreatment history, emotion regulation difficulties and child temperament. Initial findings will be presented.

Discussion: Given the bidirectional relationship between ADHD and harsh parenting, it is vital to identify early shared risk factors to prevent negative downstream effects. Infant negative emotionality poses one of these risk factors. Findings across both studies will be discussed in terms of their implications for support programmes for parents at risk of using harsh parenting.

Both child and parental ADHD traits as well as diagnoses have been separately associated with lower parenting sense of competence. However, simultaneous associations of child and parental ADHD estimates with parenting sense of competence have not been reported. This study aims to assess the independent and interrelated associations of child and maternal ADHD traits and diagnoses with parenting sense of competence and its subscales of efficacy and satisfaction.

Participants were from the Prediction and Prevention of Preeclampsia and Intrauterine Growth Restriction study conducted in Finland. They comprised 2215 children (51,9% boys) and their mothers living in the same household. Child ADHD traits (Child Behavior Checklist), maternal ADHD traits (Adult Self-Report), and parenting sense of competence (Parenting Sense of Competence Scale) were rated by mothers when the children were 7–12 years (mean age 9.4 years). Diagnoses of ADHD (for children) and any mental disorder (for mothers) until the assessment were collected from Care Register for Health Care.

According to linear regression analyses, both the child's and mother’s higher ADHD traits as well as diagnoses predicted independently lower parenting sense of competence. Mothers of children scoring above the borderline clinical cutoff on ADHD traits reported 0.68–0.88 SD-units lower scores on parenting efficacy, satisfaction, and their sumscore. Similarly, 1 SD-unit increase in mothers’ self-rated ADHD traits was associated with 0.27–0.50 SD-units lower scores on parenting sense of competence subscales and sumscore (p-values <.001). Maternal ADHD traits or mental disorders did not explain or modify the association between child ADHD traits/diagnoses and parenting sense of competence. Results remained similar after further adjustment for child sex, age and maternal education.

Results imply that child and maternal ADHD are independently associated with experiences of lower parenting competence. When families seek support due to ADHD symptoms, it is justified to also assess need for support in parenting.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent neurodevelopmental condition, affecting up to 12% of children worldwide. ADHD can co-occur with other problem areas including sleep disturbances, with a recent survey finding around 70% of children with ADHD also reporting sleep problems. ADHD and sleep problems each affect children's functioning across a number of domains from family, social and academic functioning. However, their co-occurrence has also been found to interact to amplify their negative impact on children’s adjustments. Such data however relies on cross-sectional correlations, leaving a gap in understanding the long-term effects of sleep problems on the impact of ADHD behaviours and children’s adjustments.

This project uses data from the Development of Emotional Resilience (DEER) observational cohort, which investigates risk and resilience factors in 7-12 years old children in East London schools, an underserved community. For this project, data collected at 2 waves were used, respectively 419 children had teacher-reported ADHD symptoms at time 1, self-reported Sleep habits at time 2 and physical, psychological and socioemotional adjustments self-reported by children at time 2. Structural Equation Modelling was used to test both direct and interactive effects of ADHD symptoms and sleep problems on wellbeing outcomes.

The findings revealed significant direct effects of ADHD symptoms and poor sleep habits on children’s wellbeing and adjustments (modelled as a latent variable across domains). ADHD symptoms and sleep problems were significantly associated with reduced scores on this well-being factor. There was a significant interaction between sleep problems and ADHD across the wellbeing outcomes (β=0.53, p<.0001). Unexpectedly, amongst children with more sleep problems, ADHD was a weaker temporal predictor of well-being scores. These findings highlight complex inter-relationships in the effects of ADHD, sleep and their co-occurrence on well-being and adjustments.

Children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) exhibit distinct speech patterns in both content and sound compared to their typically developing peers. Boys and girls present ASD symptoms in distinct ways, including variations in their speech and vocal characteristics. However, gender differences in speech among individuals on the autism spectrum remain an underexplored area of research. Many studies focus primarily or exclusively on boys, resulting in gaps in our understanding of how speech characteristics may vary between genders. Addressing this research gap is crucial for developing a more comprehensive perspective on ASD and ensuring that speech-related findings are applicable to both boys and girls. This study examined gender differences in speech sound features in children and adolescents with ASD, focusing on key aspects such as fundamental frequency (F0), speech rate, and voice quality indicators, including Harmonic-to-Noise Ratio, jitter, and shimmer.

Speech samples were collected from 80 participants aged 6 to 17 years, who completed various speech tasks. These tasks included sections from the ADOS-2 assessment, reading texts with varying emotional tones, and reading words and pseudowords from the IDS-2 test. This approach ensured a mix of naturalistic and structured speech samples, providing a comprehensive dataset for analyzing gender-related differences in speech sound characteristics.

The collected data is currently undergoing computer-based analysis to assess how gender influences speech features in children with ASD. By focusing on these differences, the study aims to enhance our understanding of how males and females on the autism spectrum differ in vocal patterns. These findings may offer valuable insights into the role of gender in ASD profiles and contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the gender-specific presentation of ASD.

A systematic review (Prospero Registration Number: CRD42024524871) was conducted to synthesize the existing literature on the associations between internalizing behaviors (IBs), externalizing behaviors (EBs), and parenting stress (PS) in families of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The study aimed to (1) investigate the subtypes of IBs and EBs most associated with PS from early childhood to adolescence; (2) explore differences in PS levels between mothers and fathers, both within coparental dyads (i.e., parents raising the same child) and across independent samples; (3) investigate how IBs and EBs change with age; and (4) analyze how the relationships between IBs, EBs, and PS evolve over time. This review also included studies evaluating intervention programs aimed at reducing the intensity of these behaviors and/or alleviating daily PS. After searching four databases (PubMed, Scopus, PsycINFO, and Wiley Online Library), 76 studies meeting the inclusion criteria were identified. Our findings reveal consistent positive associations between children’s IBs, EBs and PS, regardless of the child’s age. Some results suggest that EBs are stronger predictors of PS than IBs, while PS appears to predict both IBs and EBs. The findings regarding the impact of age on the intensity of both IBs and EBs, as well as the role of parental gender on PS levels, remains inconsistent. Regarding long-term associations, some longitudinal studies provide evidence of bidirectional associations between children’s IBs, EBs and PS, which may intensify over time. Fortunately, intervention programs showed promising results in reducing both behavioral problems and daily PS, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions to support these families.