Rate and predictors of divorce among parents of youths with ADHD.

Discord between parents of youth with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is not uncommon. Parents of children with ADHD report less marital satisfaction, fight more often, and use fewer positive and more negative verbalizations during childrearing discussions than parents of children without ADHD (Barkley, Fischer, Edelbrock, & Smallish, 1991; Jensen, Shervette, Xenakis, & Bain, 1988; Johnston & Behrenz, 1993). Studies also highlight the link between severity of child behavior and interparental discord, reporting greater discord among parents of youth with ADHD and comorbid oppositional-defiant disorder (ODD) or conduct disorder (CD) than parents of youth with ADHD-alone or without ADHD (Barkley, Anastopoulos, Guevremont, & Fletcher, 1992; Lindahl, 1998; Wymbs, Pelham, Gnagy, & Molina, 2008). Given the stressful nature of parenting children with ADHD (Johnston & Mash, 2001), the common presence of multiple environmental stressors in these families (Counts, Nigg, Stawicki, Rappley, & Von Eye, 2005), and the linkage between these variables and marital conflict (Cummings & Davies, 1994), the elevated rates of interparental discord in families of youth with ADHD is not surprising. The prevalence and severity of conflict between parents of children with ADHD is concerning given data suggesting that specific conflict resolution tactics predict later divorce. Specifically, couples observed to exhibit elevated levels of maladaptive problem-solving methods are more likely to divorce (Gottman, Coan, Carrere, & Swanson, 1998; Gottman & Levenson, 1992; Rogge & Bradbury, 1999; Rogge, Bradbury, Hahlweg, Engl, & Thurmaier, 2006). Heyman and colleagues (Heyman & Hunt, 2007; Heyman & Slep, 2001), conversely, caution against over-interpreting findings from divorce prediction studies given the prevalence of important methodological limitations (e.g., failing to cross-validate prediction equations). Acknowledging their concern, this line of research, at a minimum, underscores the potential of highly discordant couples (e.g., parents of children with ADHD) divorcing over time. Surprisingly, research has not consistently found that divorce rates differ between parents of children and adolescents with and without ADHD. Although several studies revealed a greater prevalence of divorce among families of children and adolescents with ADHD (Barkley, Fischer, Edelbrock, & Smallish, 1990; Brown & Pacini, 1989; Faraone, Biederman, Keenan, & Tsuang, 1991; Jensen et al., 1988), an equal number found no differences (Barkley et al. 1991; McGee, Williams, & Silva, 1984; Minde et al., 2003; Schachar & Wachsmuth, 1991). These conflicting findings likely occurred for two reasons: (1) all but two studies (Barkley et al. 1990, 1991) assessed parents of pre-adolescents and (2) all studies used a single assessment point. Investigations using longitudinal data sets with families of children across a wider age-range are needed to examine the probability of divorce over a greater passage of time. Furthermore, because young children are not the only ones negatively affected by divorce, but adolescents and young adults as well (Amato, 2000), studies are needed to compare the prevalence of divorce in families with or without ADHD youth of all ages. Marital relations researchers have identified a number of variables that place couples at risk for divorce (e.g., Gottman, 1994). Amato and Rogers (1997) conceptualize that distal contextual factors and proximal interpersonal behaviors predispose couples to engage in marital discord and, ultimately, divorce. Indeed, both distal characteristics, such as prior marriage and education level (Emery, 1999), and proximal variables, like depression and substance abuse/dependence (Amato & Rogers, 1997), portend risk of divorce for married couples. Curiously, Amato and Rogers’s model (1997) did not account for the potential influence of distal or proximal child factors on risk of divorce. This is noteworthy because proximal disruptive child behavior has been shown to exacerbate proximal adult behavior linked with divorce, including stress and alcohol consumption (Pelham et al., 1997, 1998) and interparental discord (Schermerhorn, Cummings, Chow, & Goeke-Morey, 2007; Wymbs et al., 2007). Distal child variables (e.g., child age, race/ethnicity, number of offspring) have also been linked with marital dissolution (Emery, 1999). In brief, studies are sorely needed to examine the unique influence of distal/proximal parent and child variables on risk of divorce. Another proximal parent risk factor particularly relevant for parents of children with externalizing disorders is antisocial behavior (e.g., Lahey et al., 1988). Evidence supports a hereditary link between parental antisocial personality disorder and child ADHD/ODD/CD (Faraone, Biederman, Jetton, & Tsuang, 1997; Pfiffner, McBurnett, Rathouz, & Judice, 2005), which may also represent a distal variable contributing to the risk of divorce in these families (Emery, Waldron, Kitzmann, & Aaron, 1999; Jockin, McGue, & Lykken, 1996). Since antisocial adults exhibit harmful interpersonal behaviors like aggression, which is a reliable predictor of divorce potential (Heyman, O’Leary, & Jouriles, 1995) and completion (Rogge & Bradbury, 1999), research is needed to examine the role that parental antisociality may play in exacerbating marital dissolution in families of children with ADHD. This study sought to address the aforementioned gaps in the extant literature by: 1) Comparing the rate of divorce between parents of adolescents and young adults with and without ADHD in childhood and 2) Investigating the degree to which empirically/theoretically-relevant parent and child characteristics prospectively predict marital dissolution in these families. We hypothesized that parents of youth diagnosed with ADHD in childhood were more likely to have a shorter latency to divorce than parents of youth without ADHD. Based on Amato and Rogers (1997) conceptual model of divorce, we expected that distal (level of education, marital history) and proximal parent variables (substance abuse, depression, antisocial behavior) would uniquely predict the rate of divorce in a subset of the families of children with ADHD. Extending their model, we hypothesized that distal (age, race/ethnicity) and proximal child factors (ADHD symptom severity, ODD/CD symptom severity) would also uniquely predict the rate of divorce in the context of the distal/proximal parent risk factors.