Internet Support Groups for Parents of Children with Add: An

243 Pages·2016·1.94 MB·English

by  Kriston B. Schellinger

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Dissertations Theses and Dissertations
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Kriston B. Schellinger
Loyola University Chicago
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Schellinger, Kriston B., "Internet Support Groups for Parents of Children with Add: An Examination of the
Characteristics of Group Members and the Impact of Social Support on Parent Functioning" (2012).
Dissertations. 392.
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Copyright © 2011 Kriston B. Schellinger
LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO

INTERNET SUPPORT GROUPS FOR PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH ADHD:
AN EXAMINATION OF THE CHARACTERISTICS OF GROUP MEMBERS AND
THE IMPACT OF SOCIAL SUPPORT ON PARENT FUNCTIONING

A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO
THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

PROGRAM IN CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY

BY
KRISTON BETH SCHELLINGER
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
AUGUST 2012
Copyright by Kriston Schellinger, 2012
All rights reserved
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thank you to everyone who supported me throughout this process. There were
several bumps in the road, but I was able to persevere because of the support of my
wonderful family and friends! I am especially grateful for my mom, dad, sister, and
family and friends in Chicago and across the country who listened, commiserated, and
provided words of encouragement to me as I worked on this project. I was able to
experience the value of social support first hand, and I am very lucky to have you all in
my life.
Many thanks are also due to my committee chair, Dr. Scott Leon, for his
guidance, patience, and encouragement throughout this process. Thank you to my
committee members, Dr. Amy Bohnert, Dr. Catherine Haden, and Dr. Colleen Conley,
for your insight and support. I also want to thank the Loyola University Chicago
Graduate School for their financial support of this project.
Finally, thank you to all of the parents who took the time to participate and make
this study possible.
iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iii
LIST OF TABLES viii
LIST OF FIGURES xi
ABSTRACT xii
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Parent Support: An Overview 1
Statement of the Problem 3
Purpose 4

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 6
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder 6
Description of ADHD 7
Incidence of ADHD 9
Age 9
Gender 10
Socioeconomic status 11
Country of origin 11
Ethnicity 12
Etiology of ADHD 12
Common Disorders that Co-occur with ADHD 15
Impairments Associated with ADHD 16
Impact of ADHD on Parents and Families 19
Treatment Approaches for ADHD 23
Parental Barriers to Treatment 26
Summary 29
Social Support 30
Definitions of Social Support Concepts 31
Indicators of social support 32
Types of social support 33
Support Groups 35
Summary 38
Support Groups on the Internet 39
What is an Internet Support Group? 40
Benefits of Internet Support Groups 41
Accessibility 42
Anonymity 42
Connecting with others 43
Treatment source 44
Potential Problems with Internet Support Groups 46
iv
Technology and miscommunication 46
False information 46
Withdrawal from face-to-face supports 47
Internet bullying and hoaxes 48
Summary 49
Limitations of Previous Research 50
ADHD and Parent Support 51
Impact of Internet Support Groups 52
Internet Support Groups for Parents 54
Risks of Internet Support Groups 55
Aims and Research Questions 56
Research Question 1 57
What are the demographic characteristics of participants in Internet support
groups for parents of children with ADHD? 57
Research Question 2 58
What motivates parents to join an Internet support group? 58
Research Question 3 59
Is participation in Internet support groups associated with adverse experiences? 59
Research Question 4 59
Do participants in Internet support groups also receive traditional mental health
services? 59
Hypotheses 60
Hypothesis 1 60
Child symptoms, parenting stress, and parental depressive symptoms 60
Hypothesis 2 63
Participation in an Internet support group, social support, and perceived stress 63
Hypothesis 3 67
Participation in an Internet support group, social support, and parental
depression 67

CHAPTER THREE: METHOD 71
Procedures 71
Identification of Internet Support Groups 71
Recruitment of Participants 73
Ethical Considerations 75
Data Collection 76
Measures and Operational Definition of Variables 76
Demographic Questionnaire 77
Previous Treatment Experiences 77
Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale 78
Disruptive Behavior Stress Inventory 79
Multi-Dimensional Support Scale 81
Vanderbilt ADHD Diagnostic Parent Rating Scale 83
Analytic Procedures for Research Questions 84
Descriptive Information 84
v
Comparing Sample to Previous Samples 85
Previous Treatment Experience (Research Question 4) 86
Basic Analytic Procedures for Hypotheses 87
Hypothesis 1 88
Hypothesis 2 89
Hypothesis 3 91

CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS 93
Research Question 1 96
Research Question 2 102
Research Question 3 104
Research Question 4 107
Relation between Demographic, Independent, and Dependent Variables 108
Comparing Sample to Previous Samples 114
Hypothesis 1 116
Parenting Stress Experienced 117
Degree of Parenting Stress 118
Parental Depressive Symptoms 120
Summary 122
Hypothesis 2 122
Length of Time in Group 124
Number of Visits to Group per Week 130
Number of Hours Visiting Group per Week 135
Number of Messages Posted per Week 137
Summary 139
Hypothesis 3 141
Length of Time in Group 142
Number of Visits to Group per Week 145
Number of Hours Visiting Group per Week 147
Number of Messages Posted per Week 151
Summary 153

CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION 155
Research Question 1 155
Education, Income, and Marital Status of Participants 155
Participation Rates of Fathers 157
Parental Psychopathology 161
Research Question 2 163
Research Question 3 165
Research Question 4 167
Comparing Sample to Previous Samples 169
Hypothesis 1 170
Hypothesis 2 175
Hypothesis 3 181
Limitations 184
vi
Conclusions and Future Directions 188

APPENDIX A: INFORMED CONSENT DOCUMENT 192

APPENDIX B: DEMOGRAPHIC QUESTIONNAIRE 196

APPENDIX C: PREVIOUS TREATMENT EXPERIENCES 203

APPENDIX D: CENTER FOR EPIDEMIOLOGIC STUDIES DEPRESSION
SCALE 206

APPENDIX E: DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIORS STRESS INVENTORY 208

APPENDIX F: MULTI-DIMENSIONAL SUPPORT SCALE 211

APPENDIX G: VANDERBILT ADHD DIAGNOSTIC PARENT RATING SCALE 214

REFERENCE LIST 218

VITA 229

vii
LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Number of Members and Participants in Internet Support Groups 94

Table 2. Rates of Participation in the Internet Support Group 95

Table 3. Residence of Participants 97

Table 4. Demographic Characteristics of Participants 98

Table 5. Diagnoses Reported by Parents for Themselves 99

Table 6. Parent-Reported Diagnostic Characteristics of Their Child with ADHD 101

Table 7. Reasons Parents Joined an Internet Support Group 102

Table 8. Reasons Parents Joined an Internet Group Instead of a Face-to-Face Group 103

Table 9. Positive Experiences of Parents in Internet Support Groups 105

Table 10. Negative Experiences of Parents in Internet Support Groups 106

Table 11. Pearson Product-Moment Correlations between Demographic Variables,
Child ADHD Symptoms, Parenting Stress, and Parental Depressive
Symptoms 112

Table 12. Pearson Product-Moment Correlations between Demographic and Social
Support Variables 113

Table 13. Means and Standard Deviations of Independent and Dependent Variables 116

Table 14. Child ADHD and ODD Symptoms Predicting Parenting Stress
Experienced 118

Table 15. Child ADHD and ODD Symptoms Predicting Degree of Parenting Stress 119

Table 16. Child ADHD and ODD Symptoms Predicting Parental Depressive
Symptoms 121

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Table 17. Moderating Effect of Enacted Support from the Internet Support Group on
Length of Participation in the Group Predicting Degree of Parenting Stress 126

Table 18. Standard Errors and t-Tests for Simple Slopes Exploring the Relation
between Degree of Parenting Stress and Enacted Support 127

Table 19. Moderating Effect of Perceived Support from the Internet Support Group
on Length of Participation in the Group Predicting Degree of Parenting
Stress 129

Table 20. Moderating Effect of Enacted Support from the Internet Support Group
on Visits per Week Predicting Degree of Parenting Stress 131

Table 21. Standard Errors and t-Tests for Simple Slopes Exploring the Relation
between Degree of Parenting Stress and Enacted Support 132

Table 22. Moderating Effect of Perceived Support from the Internet Support Group
on Visits per Week to an Internet Support Group Predicting Degree of
Parenting Stress 134

Table 23. Moderating Effect of Enacted Support from the Internet Support Group on
Hours Reading and Writing Posts per Week Predicting Degree of
Parenting Stress 136

Table 24. Moderating Effect of Perceived Support from the Internet Support Group
on Hours Reading and Writing Posts per Week Predicting Degree of
Parenting Stress 137

Table 25. Moderating Effect of Enacted Support from the Internet Support Group
on Posts per Week Predicting Degree of Parenting Stress 138

Table 26. Moderating Effect of Perceived Support from the Internet Support Group
on Posts per Week Predicting Degree of Parenting Stress 140

Table 27. Moderating Effect of Enacted Support from the Internet Support Group
on Length of Participation in an Internet Support Group Predicting
Parental Depression 144

Table 28. Moderating Effect of Perceived Support from the Internet Support Group
on Length of Participation in an Internet Support Group Predicting
Parental Depression 145

Table 29. Moderating Effect of Enacted Support from the Internet Support Group
on Visits per Week Predicting Parental Depression 147

ix