While working with parents of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) at the University at Buffalo, Gregory A. Fabiano noticed something was missing: the fathers.

Fabiano, an assistant professor in the Graduate School of Education, made the discovery while still a graduate assistant at the UB Center for Children and Families, which runs a summer treatment program that has helped more than 2,500 children with behavioral, emotional and learning problems. The program uses sports as a way to teach children peer-relationship skills, Fabiano said…

“I was surprised to find there were no studies on dads with kids with ADHD and so I thought this would be a good area in which we could try to do something. My dissertation was trying out a parenting program specifically for fathers, using sports as a kind of hook to get the dads interested and the kids too,” Fabiano said…

“We thought for a chronic disorder like ADHD where these fathers aren’t going to be dealing with these problems for a couple weeks or a couple months, but for the child’s entire life, the treatment has to be well-liked, palatable and engaging,” Fabiano explained.

The results, he said, have been remarkable.

“We had huge differences on things like drop-out rates for both the dad and the child. The dads in the COACHES group were more likely to try out the homework, which was a pretty big accomplishment,” Fabiano said. “They also rated the treatment as better.” …

Also, the children themselves seemed to be tension-free while playing, a sharp contrast to their previous experiences with sports, he said.

“Families with children with ADHD tell us lots of horror stories about their children failing at team sports because they weren’t paying attention when the ball is coming toward them or they have a low frustration threshold, so they stomped off the field if they made an error,” Fabiano said.

The best result by far was the sense of community that the program offered the fathers…

At each meeting, while the children practice soccer skills, the fathers meet to learn parenting skills, such as “how to pay attention to the child’s good behaviors, give clear commands, use time outs well,” Fabiano said…

Success on the field means a greater chance of success at home and school…

Source: Science Daily
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071023173432.htm