Sibling Relationships Among Children With ADHD

Objective: This study investigated the quality of sibling relationships among children with ADHD relative to those without ADHD. Additional analyses examined whether externalizing and internalizing problems comorbid with ADHD affected sibling relationships. Method: Participants were 77 children with ADHD and 14 nonproblem control children. Sibling relationships were assessed via three informants: mother report, self-report, and sibling report. Results: In analyses utilizing hierarchical linear modeling to combine data from the three informants, children with ADHD showed increased conflict in sibling relationships, relative to nonproblem children. Comorbid externalizing problems were associated with less warmth/closeness and increased conflict in the sibling relationship and largely accounted for the finding that children with ADHD showed greater sibling relationship problems. Comorbid internalizing problems were associated with less warmth/closeness in the sibling relationship. Conclusion: It is recommended that sibling relationships be incorporated into theories of social impairment in ADHD. (J. of Att. Dis. 2008; 11(4) 482-492)