Family Accommodation in Pediatric Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder

TLDR

Family accommodation in pediatric OCD has received limited empirical study despite its recognized importance in treatment. The study aimed to examine how family accommodation relates to symptom severity, functional impairment, and behavior problems in youth with OCD. The authors assessed these relationships in 57 clinic‑referred children aged 7–17 with OCD. Family accommodation was common and positively associated with symptom severity, parent‑rated functional impairment, and both internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, and it mediated the link between symptom severity and parent‑rated impairment.

Abstract

Despite the importance of the family in the treatment of pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), relatively little empirical attention has been directed to family accommodation of symptoms. This study examined the relations among family accommodation, OCD symptom severity, functional impairment, and internalizing and externalizing behavior problems in a sample of 57 clinic-referred youth 7 to 17 years old (M = 12.99 +/- 2.54) with OCD. Family accommodation was a frequent event across families. Family accommodation was positively related to symptom severity, parent-rated functional impairment (but not child-rated impairment), and externalizing and internalizing behavior problems. Family accommodation mediated the relation between symptom severity and parent-rated functional impairment.