Race, Class, and Parental Advocacy for Students with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

This study looks into how race and class privilege impact forms of parental advocacy for students with ADD and ADHD in a suburban public school district. Through analysis of qualitative interviews, this study discovers that economic capital, along with social and cultural capital are crucial to success in parental advocacy. The necessity of these forms of capital shows how inequalities can be exacerbated in this space. In order for parents to successfully advocate for their children, they not only must be white and wealthy, but they additionally must have vast cultural knowledge and social connections.