Parent Training Management for Preschool ADHD

Investigators in the Department of Psychology, University of Southampton, UK undertook a comparison of parent training (PT) to parent counseling and support (PC&S) techniques in the management of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) using a community sample of 3-year-old children. Of 78 children with a preschool diagnosis equivalent to ADHD, 30 were randomly assigned to the PT group, 28 to the PC&S group, and 20 to a “waiting-list” control (WLC) group. The core symptoms of preschool ADHD and conduct/oppositional disorders were assessed and scored in a structured interview (PACS—Parental Account of Childhood Symptoms).¹ A group of non-ADHD controls were selected at random from those whose PACS scores fell below the cutoffs for inclusion in the study. The mean PACS scores for ADHD children and non-ADHD controls were 20.94 and 13.25, respectively (P=.0001). A PACS score lower than …