Mindfulness for Stress Reduction in Parents of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: A Systematic Review
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Parents of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) present high levels of stress. This population may benefit from Mindfulness-based interventions (MBI) to reduce their stress. This systematic review assesses current literature about the efficacy of MBI for managing stress and stress-related outcomes among those parents. Methods: Studies published up to September 2025 were systematically searched in PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Scopus, and complemented with citation tracking. Both randomized and non-randomized studies were included, provided they quantitatively evaluated parenting stress. Bias assessment was performed using Cochrane ROB-2 and ROBINS-I tools and GRADE analysis was performed. A qualitative synthesis is presented due to the substantial heterogeneity among studies. Results: Nineteen studies including nine Randomized Control Trials (RCTs) and ten non-RCTs met the inclusion criteria. Eight studies used an MBI for parents only, ten studies had a parallel intervention for the child/adolescent, and one study used an MBI for parents and teachers. Overall, the studies showed statistically significant stress reduction, either immediately after the end of the MBI (five RCTs and three non-RCTs) and mostly maintained at follow-up or presenting a delayed therapeutic effect which was only evident at the follow-up analysis (one RCT and four non-RCTs). However, some studies reported only mixed findings or no…
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