Excerpt:The prognosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHA) continues to "show heightened risk of multiple mental health and social difficulties as well as premature mortality in adult life" after nearly 50 years of primary pharmacological treatment. If the prognosis of ADHA is not changed by stimulants, then 2016 research that stimulants may cause cardiac arrhythmia and myocardial infarcation associated with subquent death in children younger than 17 years prescribed methylphenidate (MPH)^2 raises the question of whether stimulants should be used. Furthermore, a 2015 Cochran Review found 98.6% of ADHD randomized clinical trials could also have been considered high risk by using a stricter definition. ^3 Has medicalization and marketing of the diagnosis and treatment of ADHD become the basis of putting children at risk by using stimulants, especially in the United States?

Attention/deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) affects a sizable number of children ages 4 to 17 and can be impairing into adulthood. Genetics are partly responsible, but research shows that psychosocial disparity and the interaction of select demographic factors significantly influence ADHD prevalence. There is limited research on the primary factors for an ADHD diagnosis in Hispanic elementary school-aged children. The purpose of this quantitative cross-sectional survey research was to determine the impact of disparity and interaction of psychosocial factors on an ADHD diagnosis. The research questions asked whether there was a relationship between the independent variables (mother's marital status, family income, insurance coverage, gender, age, Spanish spoken at home) and the dependent variable (an ADHD diagnosis) and whether the independent variables were predictive of an ADHD diagnosis. The theoretical framework was derived from Vygotsky and Bronfenbrenner who posited that an individual's culture influences development and a child's development is affected by the environment and external forces, respectively. Elementary school parents (N = 105) completed a self-administered survey to assess the independent variables' impact on an ADHD diagnosis. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square analysis, and binary logistic regression. Results showed males (23.8%) more likely than females to be diagnosed with ADHD. Results also found gender (p = .002) and age [X2(7) = 15.302, p = .032] to be significant overall, R2 = .31. These findings could result in positive social change by fostering awareness, early identification, and treatment of ADHD in Hispanic children and similar communities and may also decrease health care costs.

Research has shown a link between urban students' success in U.S. schools and the level of parental involvement. However, urban parents have historically low levels of engagement in their children's education. Increased involvement of urban parents in their children's education can increase student success in urban schools. The purpose of this generic qualitative research study was to understand the experiences of urban parents of children diagnosed with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) who have participated in an online training program to learn about their children's learning disability. Self-efficacy, andragogy, experiential learning, and sociocultural theory were used as conceptual foundations to guide the research. The research question was what are the experiences and perspectives of urban parents of children diagnosed with ADHD who participated in an online training program designed to develop their understanding of their child's learning disability. Participants in this generic qualitative study were 8 parents who participated in an online training program for parents of children with ADHD. Data sources included semi-structured interviews. Data were analyzed using thematic inductive data analysis to identify patterns and themes. The key findings indicated that parents found the online training program helpful in understanding their children's specific learning needs and supported them to become more involved in their children's education. This study contributed to social change by providing insights into an innovative learning environment that advanced urban parent learning and fostered parental involvement in urban schools. Educational leaders can use this knowledge to encourage productive parental outreach programs for urban parents.

Questionnaires compromised of (a) a description of a child (either male or female) exhibiting attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) behaviors (either predominately hyperactive/impulsive or predominately inattentive) and (b) 13 questions about the description were completed by 562 regular elementary education teachers in the state of Utah. The questions, which offered teachers a range of responses on a 5 point Likert scale, were designed to assess the extent to which the gender and behaviors of the child described affected the extent to which teachers were able to identify the child as being representative of a child with ADHD, teachers' attributional assumptions about the possible etiological causes and beneficial treatments for the child's difficulties, and teachers' perceived abilities to help the child. Results indicated that behaviors, but not the gender of the child described, significantly affected the teachers' abilities to recognize the child as being representative of someone with ADHD and significantly affected teachers' ratings of etiological causes for the child's difficulties. Neither behaviors nor gender significantly affected teachers' ratings of treatments. Behaviors, but not gender, significantly affected teachers' perceived abilities to help change the described child's actions, but did not significantly affect teachers' perceived abilities to help the described child become a better student. There were no significant interactions between behaviors and gender on any items. These results are discussed with an emphasis on the implications for school psychologists working with children with ADHD and their teachers within the context of the school system.

This study evaluated the relationship between noise and academic performance and behavior of children with ADHD (n = 15) and without ADHD (n = 18). Children completed math sheets under four noise conditions: no noise, standard classroom noise, classroom noise with verbalizations, and classroom noise with classical music. There were no differences in math performance between the two groups. Children with ADHD exhibited more problem behaviors than children without ADHD. Group-by-condition interactions were not significant. Significant effects were found for noise condition; children completed more math problems and had fewer inappropriate behaviors in the no-noise condition. However, there were significant order effects with children performing better on the initial task. The no-noise condition was always presented first; other conditions were randomized. Thus, it is impossible to determine if improved performance was due to decreased environmental stimulation or initial performance effects. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Many children and adolescents in the United States experience externalizing behavior problems identified as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, and conduct disorder. These behavior problems cause disruptions in the youth’s socioemotional functioning and academic success. The assignment of a diagnosis from the DSM-5 is often the first step in treatment planning, because many clinics and third-party payers require a diagnosis for authorization of treatment payment. However, research has repeatedly revealed that informants differ in the information they provide regarding youth mental health. While studies have separately examined the association of youth characteristics, parent characteristics, and family characteristics and informant agreement, there is a dearth of research examining the association between these variables in mother-father agreement of ethnically diverse youth. The current study addresses this gap in a sample of 88 mother-father dyads in a clinic sample of youth evaluated for the presence of externalizing behavior problems. Pearson correlations and paired t-tests were run to examine associations and discrepancies, respectively, between mother and father reports of youth inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, defiance/aggression, and learning problems. Regression analyses were run to examine the impact of child age, gender, symptom severity, ethnicity, family income, and parent mental health (i.e., depressive symptoms, parenting stress) on mother-father reporting discrepancies. Overall associations between mother and father reports of youth behavior problems were positively correlated, and moderate to large in magnitude. Mother’s depression scores, mother and father parenting stress scores, and child’s symptom severity were significant predictors in some regression analyses. Child age, child ethnicity, father’s depression scores, and family income were not significant predictors in the regression analyses. Results of this research contribute to the small literature base of discrepancies in parent reports in ethnically diverse youth. It further expands upon the minimal research regarding paternal caregivers. Further, it highlights the need for mental health screening of youth’s parents during child psychological assessment to identify situations in which both parent reports may be necessary for appropriate assessment of youth mental health.

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Developmental Dyslexia (DD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and Educational Attainment (EA) are highly prevalent conditions that have a significant impacton individuals' academic and social functioning. These conditions have a complex genetic basis and are often comorbid. To assess the polygenic architecture of these traits, psychiatric genetics researchers utilize a sophisticated tool known as polygenic scores (PGS). By combining numerous genes of individually modest effects, PGS summarizes an individual's genetic risk as a single score. In this study, we aimed to examine the association between PGS for ADHD and EA with typical DD traits. Using a meta-analytic approach, we analyzed data from earlier studies and found that PGS-ADHD accounts for 1.2% of the variance in DD, with a pooled effect size of r = -0.11 (95% CI = [-0.171, -0.050]). Similarly, PGS-EA accounted for 3.2% of the variance in DD, with a pooled effect size of r = 0.18 (95% CI = [0.070, 0.288]). Although these effect sizes are relatively small, it is important to note that PGS are not typically strong predictors on their own, but rather capture a small portion of the genetic variation that contributes to a trait or outcome. My findings suggest that PGS for ADHD and EA are associated with DD, indicating that DD has a complex genetic basis. However, these findings also raise questions about the impact of PGS on psychiatric research moving forward. To address these questions, I provide recommendations for future researchdirections.

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