Co-occurrence Patterns of ADHD Symptoms and Reactive and Proactive Aggression in Chinese Adolescents: Associations With Parenting Practices

Abstract

Objective:

Previous studies have found that ADHD symptoms often co-occur with aggressive behavior in adolescents, and that reactive aggression is more closely related to ADHD symptoms than proactive aggression. However, the specific co-occurrence patterns of ADHD symptoms and different functions of aggression remain unclear, as does their relationship with parenting practices. This study used a person-centered approach to examine the co-occurrence patterns of ADHD symptoms, reactive aggression, and proactive aggression and their associations with parenting practices.

Method:

A total of 1,152 mother-adolescent dyads participated in this study (adolescents: M_age = 14.29; 48.0% girls). Latent profile analysis was conducted to identify adolescent profiles of ADHD, reactive, and proactive aggression, followed by multinomial logistic regression to examine relationships between these profiles and auxiliary variables.

Results:

Latent profile analysis identified three patterns of adolescent- and mother-reported ADHD symptoms, reactive aggression, and proactive aggression: low symptom (84.4%), reactive co-occurrence (10.0%), and complete co-occurrence (5.6%). Multinomial logistic regression revealed that adolescents in the complete co-occurrence group had higher rates of corporal punishment, while adolescents in the reactive co-occurrence group exhibited higher rates of verbal hostility.

Conclusion:

These findings highlight the importance of distinguishing between reactive and proactive aggression in the context of ADHD and suggest that different co-occurrence patterns may be shaped by distinct parenting practices. Addressing specific parenting behaviors could help mitigate aggression in adolescents with ADHD symptoms.