Group Therapy for Improving Self-Esteem and Social Functioning of College Students With ADHD

The present study examined the effectiveness of interpersonal group therapy designed to improve self-esteem and social functioning in college students with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Participants with documented ADHD diagnoses completed self-report measures of self-esteem and social functioning at the initiation of the study, after 6 weeks, and at 12 weeks. Half the participants completed a 12-week interpersonal group therapy while the other half served as a control group matched by gender and age. Findings suggest that interpersonal group therapy improves self-esteem, psychosocial competence, and emotional maturity, and should be a treatment option for college students with ADHD. Implications for practice are discussed.     

A Weak Association between Traits of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Gambling in College Students

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has been characterized as a comorbidity to pathological gambling (PG). However, contradictory evidence has emerged, and it has not been established whether nonimpulsive features of ADHD (e.g., inattention, hyperactivity) contribute to PG risk, or how robust this relationship is in college samples. Using data from 224 college students, multiple regression analyses examined the association between ADHD traits and gambling. A marginal link between impulsivity and gambling emerged, but only in males; hyperactivity and inattention were unrelated to gambling. Therefore, caution should be used in attributing risk for PG to college students with ADHD traits, particularly inattention and hyperactivity.     

Making the Case for a Comprehensive ADHD Assessment Model on a College Campus

Despite increased demands on university counseling center resources, some centers are offering comprehensive assessments for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The rationale for one counseling center's decision to provide comprehensive ADHD assessments is presented, including the clinical, legal, social, medical, financial, and philosophical factors influencing such a decision. The general characteristics of the students presenting for assessment and the specific ADHD assessment process are described. In addition, the benefits of and drawbacks to such a program, as well as its applicability to other university counseling centers, are discussed.     

Visualisation to support children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder learning to solve mathematical word problems: A randomised controlled trial

This randomised controlled trial experimental study compared the effectiveness of using two different types of visualisation – self-constructed visualisation (SCV) and passively received visualisation (PRV) – to help children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) solve mathematical word problems. While SCV refers to drawings that children create to help solve given word problems, PRV refers to pre-made images that accompany word problems. Twenty children with ADHD in Kuwait, aged nine to 11 years, were randomly assigned to either the SCV or PRV group, where they were taught to use either SCV or PRV to solve word problems across 20 daily one-to-one sessions. The results showed that regardless of the visualisation type, children's word problem-solving ability significantly improved. Children with ADHD should thus be encouraged to use visualisation to help make the word problem-solving process more accessible to them.     

What knowledge and conceptions do Irish primary schoolteachers hold on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder?

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis rates have increased significantly in recent times. A teacher's role is crucial in determining if a child will be referred for an ADHD assessment. Teachers' opinions and observations are also required for and play a huge role in the actual assessment process. For this reason, their knowledge of ADHD is also an important part of this process. This research has measured, on a small scale, Irish primary schoolteacher's knowledge and conceptions about ADHD using the Knowledge of Attention Deficit Disorders Scale (KADDS) questionnaire. Ninety teachers participated in the research from 11 primary schools in County Clare. A quantitative method was utilised enabling the research to be comparable with other pieces of research using the same questionnaire. Data in relation to the teachers' professional background were also gathered in order to analyse significant differences based on a variety of factors. The results were analysed as prescribed in KADDS test manual using the statistical software package SPSS. This research shows that Irish primary schoolteachers are more knowledgeable in regards to ADHD symptoms and diagnosis than they are in the areas of associated features or treatments. It also shows that knowledge levels of Irish primary schoolteachers are higher than teachers in earlier research using the same questionnaire.     

Doing being Boys with ADHD: category memberships and differences in SEN classroom practices

This paper builds on sociological assumptions that teachers, schools and schooling may play an important role in the recognition and psychopathologization of particular boys as ‘difficult, disordered and disturbed’. The data draw on ethnographic work combined with video recordings of everyday classroom practices in a special educational needs unit with boys diagnosed with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). Drawing on ethnomethodological work on members’ understanding of social categories (MCA) combined with the related methodology of ‘doing difference’, the focus is on the local social process through which boys’ unruly behaviors are made sense of and treated as the grounds for shifting categorization practices. It is found that both teachers and boys orient to the institutional categories Teacher and Student in teacher–student interactions for the ordering of the classroom . The boys’ conduct is in these instances far from pathological but is meaningful in the sense that it provides local resources to resist teacher authorithy and display agency. Overall, the analysis highlights the complexity of locally accomplished identity practices – in terms of how institutional-, gender- and age-appropriate conduct meshes with diagnostic criteria – in the social identification of boys diagnosed with ADHD.     

干扰负载对注意缺陷多动障碍儿童视觉工作记忆的影响

为考察编码和提取阶段的干扰负载对注意缺陷多动障碍(ADHD)儿童视觉工作记忆的影响。本研究采用纸笔测验,分别要求被试对编码和提取阶段的材料进行操作。结果发现,编码阶段,干扰负载对两组被试的影响没有显著差异;提取阶段,干扰负载对ADHD组被试的影响显著大于普通组被试。相对于普通组儿童而言,ADHD儿童的视觉工作记忆更易受到干扰负载的影响,这种影响体现在提取阶段。     

Home literacy,television viewing,fidgeting and ADHD in young children

Factors related to parent ratings of young children’s (mean age = 3.72, range = 3–6) fidgeting and reports of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were examined in a nationally representative sample of US families via the National Household Education Surveys. In structural equation models, the number of television hours viewed daily was associated with more fidgeting (a sign of hyperactivity), which, in turn, was related to ADHD, when controlling for race/ethnicity, SES, family structure, autism, emotional disturbance and gender. The home literacy environment (shared reading, children’s books and library visits) was negatively associated with both fidgeting and hours of television. Home literacy was indirectly negatively related with ADHD via fidgeting. Boys and children with autism fidgeted more frequently, where as children from two-parent families were less likely to have ADHD. Overworked parents allowed more television viewing than other parents. The implications for future studies involving television viewing, home literacy, attention and hyperactivity are discussed.     

The antithesis of inclusion? The emergence and functioning of ADHD special education classes in the Swedish school system

The neuropsychiatric paradigm has substantial impact on schools. The increase in the number of pupils being diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is an expression of the medicalisation of deviance. There is also an increase in educational classes specially designed to meet the needs of children with ADHD. This is contrary to the notion of inclusion and in conflict with the Swedish school law. Thus, it is important to obtain knowledge about Swedish ADHD classes. A questionnaire was sent to all Swedish municipalities (290, response rate 76%) regarding schooling for pupils with ADHD. As many as 40 Swedish municipalities have classes specifically designed for pupils with ADHD. Although the classes are said to be specifically designed for ADHD problems, they are not properly evaluated. Municipalities with ADHD classes also exhibit ambivalence towards these classes. The emergence, prevalence and functioning of the ADHD classes are discussed in light of the notion of inclusive education.     

Training boys with ADHD to work collaboratively: Social and learning outcomes

This study examined social participation and strategic problem solving behavior of boys diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) when collaborating on a planning task with a trained peer partner. Twenty-four 9- to 13-year-old boys with ADHD who were receiving a medication intervention, were individually pre-tested to assess their initial ability to plan an errand route task. They were then observed doing an alternate planning task during collaborative sessions with a female peer partner who had received prior training in the task and in facilitating social interaction. Boys with ADHD were then individually post-tested on the original planning task. Observations of the collaborative sessions revealed significant, positive changes across three phases in the quality of social interactions by boys with ADHD, in their planning strategies, and planning efficiency. Findings suggest positive benefits of collaborative learning structures for boys with ADHD when they are placed in a collaborative learning setting with a partner who has received a prior training intervention.