Lived Experiences of Mothers of Children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Phenomenological Study

Subject Areas : Psychology

Sara Taghizadeh Hir ¹ , Mohammad Narimani ² , Seyfollah Aghajani ³ , Mehriar Nadermohammadi ⁴ , Sajjad Basharpoor ⁵

1 - PhD Student, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran
2 - Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran
3 - Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran
4 - Assistant Professor, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Ardabil University of Medical Sciences, Ardabil, Iran
5 - Professor, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, Iran

Received: 2024-03-10 Accepted : 2024-04-04 Published : 2024-05-07

Keywords: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, Lived experience, mothers,

Abstract :

The purpose of this study was to investigate the lived experiences of mothers of children with attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder. The statistical population included all mothers of children with attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder who referred to the psychiatric center of Fatemi Hospital in Ardabil city in 2023. The sample of the research enfolded 20 subjects whom were selected via purposive sampling method. The research method was a qualitative and phenomenological type. Data were attained through semi structured interviews with participant mothers of children with attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder. Data were analyzed with the seven-step descriptive phenomenological method of Colaizzi (2002). The obtained results of mothers’ lived experience were classified in 5 main themes and 19 subthemes. The main themes involved child individual problems, family problems, social and emotional problems, medical issues and school problems. The findings resulted from the analysis of the lived experiences of the children with attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder mothers also revealed the existence of a set of challenges including cultural diversity, culture-bound experiences and the participant educations levels. The other set of problems involved the mothers’ low knowledge and the educational environment. The children problems impose impairments on family natural function and influence their social, cultural and interactional relations. Therefore, making the mothers aware of the nature of the disorder and teaching interactive patterns with these children could prevent the problems facing these families.

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