Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is surrounded by confusion and controversy regarding its definition, course, etiology and treatment. Among adults, ADHD is rarely considered a diagnostic reality of primary importance and is often overlooked. This study provides descriptive validity for adult ADHD in distinguishing it from controls, and identifying both a pure condition and one wrought with comorbidity.

The positive illusory bias (PIB) – over-reporting levels of self-competence compared to other raters – has been demonstrated in youth with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), despite increased impairment rates. However, due to inconsistent definitions of the PIB, conflicting findings have emerged regarding prevalence of the PIB in youth with ADHD and whether parent or child report is actually “biased” and driving the PIB. Additionally, stability of the PIB across time is unknown. The present study used person-centered methodology cross-sectionally and longitudinally to evaluate the prevalence of the PIB in adolescents with ADHD. Results revealed a cross-domain global PIB group at baseline (18.4% of sample) but only a small social PIB group was present and stable across time. Parents in the PIB group were better reporters of scholastic competence relative to an objective measure than were youth. These findings suggest that the PIB may be significantly less prevalent in this population than previously thought.

College students with ADHD, but especially those who consume alcohol, may be at jeopardy for experiencing negative educational and occupational outcomes, problematic substance use, criminal offending, and sexual victimization. Alcohol mixed with energy drink (AmED) use is widespread across college campuses and associated with many of these same problematic outcomes. The risk of experiencing these consequences for college students with ADHD may be exacerbated by AmED use given its unique relationship, above and beyond alcohol use, with these variables. This study sought to examine relationships among GPA, lost work performance, hazardous alcohol use, illicit substance use, criminal offending, and sexual victimization in college students with ADHD who use AmED. The sample comprised students (N = 248; 36.3% male, 63.7% female) from the University of Albany’s (UAlbany) and Virginia Commonwealth University’s (VCU) disability support centers, as well as VCU’s SONA psychology subject pool. Hierarchical linear regression analysis and logistic regression analysis were used to test six hypotheses. Results showed that AmED use did not predict GPA, lost work performance, or criminal offending. However, AmED use did predict hazardous alcohol use (p < .001), illicit substance use (p < .05), and sexual victimization (p < .05). These findings provide a baseline rate of AmED use in college students with ADHD, and highlight the importance of further research regarding the potential consequences of AmED use in this population.

M.A. (Psychology) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

Children with Disruptive Behavior Disorders (DBD), including Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) have poorer language skills compared to typically developing children; however, language as a potential risk factor for DBD has received little empirical attention or evaluation. Receptive, expressive, and pragmatic language skills in preschoolers with DBD were examined. Participants were 82 preschool-age children and their primary caregivers. Primary caregivers completed a semi-structured interview and symptom and language questionnaires. Preschoolers completed measures of receptive and expressive language. Results indicated that preschoolers with DBD were more impaired on receptive, expressive, and pragmatic language compared to non-DBD children. Pragmatic language appears particularly impaired in children with DBD, and language problems appear most linked with increased hyperactivity-impulsivity (vs. inattention or oppositional-defiance). This work suggests the need for early assessment of language in preschoolers with DBD, as well as the possibly utility of tailored interventions focusing on improving pragmatic language.

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a childhood disorder that often persists into adulthood. Among adults, ADHD is highly comorbid with addictive behaviors (e.g., substance abuse and dependence), and depressive disorders. Recently, an association between ADHD and obesity has been reported in the literature; emotional and binge eating may be “addictive behaviors” that contribute to weight gain in this population. The purpose of this study was to test competing models of the hypothesized link between ADHD symptomology and overweight. Specifically, in Model 1, symptoms of depression are expected to mediate the relationship between symptoms of impulsivity and inattention and emotional and binge eating which, in turn, leads to weight gain (i.e., increased BMI). In Model 2, however, the impulsive symptoms have direct relationships with emotional and binge eating in addition to being mediated by depressive symptoms. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to test how the models fit the data of 790 college men. Both models fit the data well, with Model 2 being preferred because of its greater connection to theory. All paths were significant indicating that increased impulsive and inattentive symptoms predicted increased symptoms of depression that, in turn, predicted increased emotional/binge eating, which has a direct and positive relationship with increased BMI. Moreover, impulsive symptoms were also directly related to emotional/binge eating, suggesting different paths to overweight across ADHD subtypes. The findings of the current study elucidate the links between ADHD symptoms and overweight (i.e., increased BMI).

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur forskning från olika vetenskapliga fält och länder resonerar kring diagnostiseringen av ADHD hos förskolebarn. Som metod har en systematisk litteraturstudie använts, där de 22 vetenskapliga artiklar som framkommit vid den noggranna systematiska sökningen har granskats och analyserats genom en innehållsanalys. Vidare har the Relational Developmental System theory (RDS) använts som det teoretiska perspektivet för att analysera resultatet ytterligare. Resultatet från studierna visar på att en tidig diagnos med tillhörande behandling kan vara värdefullt för utvecklingen av barnets sociala förmågor och senare akademiska framgångar. Däremot finns det risk för feldiagnostisering och onödig behandling om diagnos ställs i tidig förskoleålder, därför bör noggrann utredning göras och en provisorisk diagnos kan vara att föredra om misstanke finns att symtomen skulle kunna vara åldersrelaterade. Forskningen har även visat att förskollärarnas kunskap om ADHD-relaterad problematik är betydelsefull för bedömningen vid utredning inför diagnostisering, men även att förskollärarnas inställning och utbildning påverkar arbetet med barn som uppvisar ADHD-symtom eller som har diagnosen. Enbart forskning från det senaste decenniet är med i denna studie, detta för ADHD-diagnostisering har ökat kraftigt och forskningen gått snabbt framåt.

O Transtorno de Déficit de Atenção e Hiperatividade (TDAH) é um distúrbio bastante referido tanto na área da saúde quanto na área da educação, podendo resultar em inúmeros problemas presentes e futuros para seus portadores. A literatura apresenta variados fatores etiológicos para o desenvolvimento do transtorno, havendo certo consenso de que o problema se deve a uma predisposição genéticaque pode seatualizar em função de estímulos docontexto ambiental. O TDAH inclui sintomas de desatenção, agitação e impulsividade que ocorrem em frequência e intensidade inadequadas à faixa etária dos sujeitos, sendo diagnosticado, geralmente,por meio de escalas comportamentais a serem respondidas por familiares e/ou professores, as quais podem ou não ser acompanhadas de testes (neuro)psicológicos, além de observação do comportamento da criança. O teste do Desenho da Figura Humana(DFH)tem sido um dos instrumentos mais utilizados por psicólogos, tanto para analisar aspectos cognitivosquanto elementos da personalidadedo executor do desenho. Dessa forma, por meio de uma comparação do desempenho no referido teste entre crianças diagnosticadas e não diagnosticadas com o transtorno, este trabalho tevecomo objetivo identificar possíveis traços indicadores da presença do TDAH nos desenhos das crianças portadoras do transtorno, visando àobtenção de mais um recurso que possa auxiliar psicólogos na execução de um diagnóstico mais confiável para o TDAH. Participaram do estudo 20crianças, alunas do1º. Ciclo do Ensino Fundamental, divididas em Grupo Clínico, composto por 10crianças diagnosticadas como sendo portadoras de TDAH, e Grupo Controle, composto por 10crianças com idade, sexo, escolaridade e nível socioeconômicoequivalentes, porém que nãoapresentavam o problema. Após ambos os grupos serem submetidos ao DFH, análises comparativas do nível de maturidade cognitiva e dos indicadores emocionais,bem como de aspectos gerais dos desenhos dos participantes (tamanho, traçado), foramefetuadas, de modo a verificar a existência ou não de diferenças significativas entre os grupos.Os resultados obtidos sugerem um desempenho mais baixo dos portadores de TDAHem termos de maturidade cognitiva, bem como maior presença de indicadores emocionaise de problemas de coordenação motora no grupo clínico, embora sem atingir significância estatística. Sugere-se a necessidade de ampliação da amostra a fim de que se possa obter resultados mais conclusivos a respeito da possibilidade de uso do DFH como instrumento auxiliar no diagnóstico do TDAH / Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a disorder that is very much referred to in the health area as well as in the area of education, which can result in numerous present and future problems for the subjects. The literature presents a variety of etiological factors for the development of the disorder, with some consensus that the problem is due to a genetic predisposition that can be updated in function of stimuli of the environmental context. ADHD includes symptoms of inattention, agitationand impulsivity that occur in frequency and intensity that are inappropriate for the subject\'s age group and are usually diagnosed through behavioral scales to be answered by family members and / or teachers, which may or may not be followed by(neuro) psychological tests, as well as observation of the child\'s behavior. The Human Figure Drawing test (HFD) has been one of the instruments most used by psychologists, both to analyze cognitive aspects and personality elements of the executor of the drawing. Thus, through a comparison of performance in HFDtest between children diagnosed and undiagnosed with the disorder, this study aimed to identify possible indicative traits of the presence of ADHD in the drawings of children with the disorder, aiming to obtain an additional resource that can help psychologists to execute a more reliable diagnosis for ADHD. The participants of the research were20 children, students from the 1st. Elementary School Cycle, divided into a Clinical Group, composed of 10 children diagnosed as having ADHD, and Control Group, composed of 10 children with age, sex, education and socioeconomic level, but who did not present the problem. After both groups were submitted to HFD, comparative analyzes of the level of cognitive maturity and emotional indicators, as well as general aspects of the participants\' drawings (size, tracing), were performed, in order to verify the existence or not of significant differences between groups. The results suggest a lower performance of the ADHD patients in terms of cognitive maturity, as well as greater presence of emotional indicators and poor manual coordination in the clinical group, although not reaching statistical significance. We suggest the need to expand the sample in order to obtain more conclusive results regarding the possibility of using HFD as an auxiliary tool in the diagnosis of ADHD

The aim of this research was to determine the perceptions of parents and learners are surrounding academic achievement and the factors which contribute to it, taking into consideration barriers to learning. The research also aimed to investigate what their perceptions are on the factors which contribute to academic achievement. There were a total of six dyads, six adolescents (middle to late adolescence) and eight parents. All of the adolescents had been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Each of the adolescents took part in an interview and the parents took part in a separate interview. The interviews were semi-structured in nature. The findings of the study indicated that academic achievement was defined as being based on marks or on the ability of the learners to achieve their potential. The factors perceived to influence academic achievement such as peers, educators, school environment and the role of parents were found to be similar between parents and adolescents. The barrier to learning (ADHD) was not perceived as having a greater influence on academic achievement than any other factor.

This study investigated foundation phase educators’ perceptions of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The educators’ views on the causes, appropriate interventions and incidence rates of ADHD were examined. A sample of 140 foundation phase educators from mainstream private and public schools participated in the study. The educators completed a self-developed questionnaire that had been piloted by the researcher. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data, in conjunction with t-tests to ascertain the differences in responses between public and private school educators. Thematic content analysis was used to identify the main categories and themes that emerged form the open-ended questions. The results revealed that the educators had a limited understanding of ADHD, in terms of what it is as well as its causes. In addition, it emerged that the educators preferred medication as the intervention method despite being aware of additional intervention methods. A comparison of the private and public school educators’ results indicated no significant difference in the educators’ perceptions regarding the cause, interventions or incidence rate of ADHD. These findings are discussed in relation to empirical studies and suggestions for future research are presented.