Investigation of the mediating effect of social cognition on the relationship between ADHD symptom severity and the parental and peer attachments of adolescents aged 11-17 with a diagnosis of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder

This study aimed to examine the relationship between attachments to parents and friends and social cognition of adolescents between the ages of 11-17 diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. The study sample consisted of a total of 200 adolescent participants, 114 male and 86 female, with an average age of 13.08±.501 between the ages of 11-17. In the ADHD group, 56 of 100 participants were male and 44 were female, while in the control group, 58 of 100 participants were male and 42 were female. The mean age of the ADHD group was 14.06±.496, while the mean age of the control group was 13.08±.348. Data were collected from the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Bakırköy Dr. Sadi Konuk Hospital. The remaining 30 participants were completed by giving gift certificates via zoom online. The control group was collected face-to-face from adolescents between the ages of 11-17 in Lüleburgaz District. The revised form of the Parent and Peer Attachment Inventory (EABE-G), Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test for Children, and Faux Pas Recognition Test Child Form were filled out by the participants under the guidance of the researcher. The Informed Consent Form and Sociodemographic Information Form, and the DSMIV-Based Screening and Assessment Scale for Disruptive Behavior Disorders in Children and Adolescents-Turgay were given to the parents of the participants. At the same time, The Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children, Present and Lifetime Form, Turkish Adaptation-ÇDŞG-ŞY was applied by the researcher in order to confirm that there was no psychopathology in the adolescents in the control group. Independent student t test, Hierarchical Regression, One-way Anova, Pearson Correlation Analysis, Process Macro Analysis were used to test the hypotheses of the study. As a result of the analyses, it was found that the ADHD group also performed worse in social cognition than those who were not diagnosed. According to the correlation analysis findings examining the relationship between ADHD severity and peer and parent secure attachment scores, a moderate negative significant relationship was found between ADHD severity and secure attachment to peers (r=-0.307) and parent (r=-0.528) (p<0.01). In addition, it is shown that ADHD severity has a statistically significant and negative effect on peer attachment (β = -0.1159, p < .001). Although GZOT did not have an indirect mediating effect between ADHD severity and peer attachment (β = -0.0167, p = 0.46), gaf recognition was found to mediate this relationship in a statistically significant way (β = -0.0992, p = 0.015). In the study; It was found that adolescents diagnosed with ADHD between the ages of 11-17 had lower levels of attachment to their parents and peers and social cognition than those not diagnosed, and that the Faux Pas Test positively mediated the relationship between ADHD severity and secure attachment to parents and peers. While our findings emphasize the importance of parental and peer support for adolescents diagnosed with ADHD, it can also be said that the creation of intervention programs based on social cognition and attachment can have a positive impact on the lives of adolescents. Keywords: ADHD, Attachment to Parents and Peers, Social Cognition, Adolescence