Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurobiological disorder traditionally thought to be a disorder of middle childhood. The evidence to date suggests that the contribution of genetic factors is more substantial than that of environmental influences. No one factor is thought to cause ADHD, however, it is accepted that many environmental variables contribute to it and there are many predictable clinical features accompany it. This thesis reviews the literature regarding ADHD in middle childhood. In addition, it will focus on the growing body of evidence suggesting behavioural, social, familial and academic difficulties are present in preschool children. Symptoms of ADHD have also been shown to persist into adulthood ADHD will be examined in terms of classification, prevalence, developmental course, comorbidity and underlying aetiology. These factors will then be compared and contrasted with ADHD in preschool, adolescence and adulthood.
The empirical paper explores whether similarities in parent and child behaviour influences parental empathetic responding. To investigate this, 152 parents completed measures of current and retrospective ADHD, parenting style, empathic responding, aggression and general mental health for themselves and ADHD screens for their child. The results suggest that mothers with higher symptoms of ADHD, experience lower levels of personal distress when dealing with their ADHD child compared with mothers with low symptoms of ADHD.