There are two sets of data; the first is a qualitative transcription, in-depth one-to-one interview with 31 HK Fathers rearing children with special needs conducted between February 2022 and September 2022. Thirty-one fathers with children with special were asked about their journey in rearing children with special needs. This data covers topics on fathers' experience of shame, guilt and other mixed emotions in various stages of caregiving for their children with special needs; the second is the quantitative online survey collected from 437 fathers between November 2022 and March 2023 that explored their level of father involvement, shame, guilt, avoidance, compensation, Chinese masculinity norms and culture while rearing children with special needs.

BackgroundChildren with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience substantial difficulty maintaining meaningful friendships, which has implications for social functioning and mental health. No systematic review has investigated their friendship difficulties.ObjectivesTo systematically review and methodologically appraise the quality of existing studies reporting on friendships of children with ADHD. To compare their friendships to typically-developing children, and examine associations between friendship and children’s social-emotional wellbeing and mental health.MethodSix databases were searched. The methodological quality of studies was assessed using the QualSyst appraisal tool and the Appraisal tool for Cross-Sectional Studies. Aspects of friendships measured were charted, along with comparisons between children with ADHD and typically-developing children and the associations between friendships and social-emotional wellbeing and mental health.ResultsTwenty-three cross-sectional studies and one longitudinal follow-up study were included. Studies included 1509 participants with ADHD, with 1197 typically-developing participants used as a companion in 19 of the 24 studies. Friendship quantity was the most investigated aspect of friendship. Children and youth with ADHD had significantly fewer friends, lower quality friendships and poorer friendship interactions. There were mixed findings from studies investigating the role or impact of friendship on social-emotional wellbeing and mental health. Twenty-two had strong methodological quality.ConclusionLimited longitudinal studies, small sample sizes and variability in measurement restrict the interpretations of friendship over time and the causal impact of friendship on social and emotional outcomes. Further research should investigate the role and impact of friendships on the social-emotional wellbeing of children and youth with ADHD.

BackgroundChildren of incarcerated parents run a high risk of ill-health and future delinquency, whereas positive parenting can support children’s healthy development. The For Our Children’s Sake (FOCS) parenting intervention for parents in prison was evaluated as a controlled trial during 2019–2021 within The Swedish Prison and Probation Service (SPPS). This study reports on the process evaluation and aimed to describe how parents perceived their participation and aspects that influenced implementation of the FOCS intervention.MethodsThis convergent mixed-methods study (QUAL + quan) included qualitative interview data after participation in the FOCS intervention group (12 parents), and quantitative questionnaire data from intervention and control groups (46 parents). Qualitative data were analysed using inductive qualitative content analysis and quantitative data using descriptive and non-parametric statistics.ResultsAn integrated synthesis of the qualitative and quantitative results showed three joint concepts that provided an extended understanding of the importance of a child and parent focused intervention available to parents in prison, where FOCS was perceived as the only place where inmates could openly reflect, and express sensitive feelings and thoughts related to the children and being a parent. Also, that the SPPS as an organisation entails partly unsupportive organisational norms with irregular individual staff engagement, which made FOCS invisible in prisons, and the importance of engagement and motivation from all participants and group leaders in the group was essential for a successful FOCS group.ConclusionThis study showed that availability of a child and parent focused intervention in prison is perceived as very important, and at the same time dependent on a trustful relationship in the group to be rewarding to the participants, where organisational norms within the SPSS need amendments for successful implementation of FOCS. These findings can guide further implementation of similar interventions in prison.

Potential solutions for targeting mental distress linked to child marriage.