Resilience levels among adolescents with ADHD using quantitative measures in a family-design study.

Objectives: To investigate resilience levels in adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) using quantitative measures when compared to their non-affected siblings and controls. We also aimed to investigate the correlation between resilience and depression, anxiety, intelligence quotient (IQ) and socioeconomic status, which may affect resilience levels and be potential confounders.

Methods: Adolescents (n=45) diagnosed with ADHD referred to an outpatient ADHD clinic, and their siblings without ADHD (n=27), with ages ranging from 12 to 17 years, were interviewed along with their parents using a semi-structured interview (Children's Interview for Psychiatric Syndromes - Parent Version). Intelligence was measured with the Block Design and Vocabulary subtests from the Wechsler Battery. Anxiety and depression were investigated using the Children State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (CSTAI) and the Child Depression Inventory (CDI), respectively. Resilience was investigated using the Resilience Scale. A control group (typically developing adolescents [TDA] and their siblings; n=39) was recruited in another outpatient facility and at two schools using the same methodology.

Results: Socioeconomic status and intelligence levels, which may affect resilience, were similar in all groups. Adolescents with ADHD showed lower resilience levels compared to siblings and TDA even when controlled for anxiety and depression levels, which were higher in ADHD. Resilience levels were higher in siblings than in adolescents with ADHD, and lower than in TDA - this last result without statistical significance.

Conclusion: In our sample, ADHD in adolescents was associated with lower resilience, even when controlled for confounders often seen in association with the disorder.