Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is an international public health concern, particularly in lowand
middle-income countries. Children who sustain TBIs typically have attentional
difficulties, which disrupt the development and functioning of other cognitive, behavioural,
and social skills. The aim of this research was to evaluate the efficacy and feasibility of
implementing an attention-training program for children who have sustained moderate-tosevere
TBI in South Africa, and to compare the efficacy of the program in two clinical
samples: children with TBI and children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD). Fifteen children aged 6 to 8 who sustained TBIs at least a year before were
recruited to form three groups: a TBI Intervention Group (n=5), a TBI Art Group (n=5)
and a TBI Control Group (n=5). Five children who had been diagnosed with ADHD formed
the ADHD Intervention Group. Children in the two Intervention Groups participated in the
‘Pay Attention!’ program (originally designed to assist children with ADHD) for 45 minutes
twice a week for 12 weeks. All children underwent neuropsychological testing pre- and postintervention
and behavioural data was collected from parents and teachers. Between- and
within-group analyses showed that children in the TBI Intervention group did not show
overall significant improvements in attention. However, children in the ADHD Intervention
Group showed individual attentional improvements on measures of the CPT-II, as well as
secondary gains in verbal memory. Nevertheless, implementing a cognitive rehabilitation
intervention in South Africa is feasible and necessary, despite limited infrastructure and
access to resources. Further research is required to better tailor interventions to the needs of
children with TBIs.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uct/oai:localhost:11427/13716 |
| Date | January 2015 |
| Creators | Lanesman, Talia |
| Contributors | Schrieff-Elson, Leigh |
| Publisher | University of Cape Town, Faculty of Humanities, Department of Psychology |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Master Thesis, Masters, MA |
| Format | application/pdf |
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