Date of Award

2005

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Psychology

Abstract

Researchers and practitioners alike are debating which procedures are most effective in assessing for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Classroom observations are frequently used in ADHD assessments, and significant differences in observed behavior between children with and without ADHD have been repeated in numerous studies. Other recent research has focused on lab-based observations as an alternative to classroom observations. Analog methods have also been found to differentiate between ADHD and non-ADHD children. Few studies have examined the usefulness of observational techniques in a clinic-referred sample. In addition, to our knowledge, there are no published studies comparing results of analog and classroom observational data from the same child. The present study compared the validity of school-based and analog observations in a group of 67 clinic-referred children (age 5 to 10), using Barkley's ADHD Behavior Coding System (1987, 1990). Trained undergraduate research assistants observed each referred child in both an analog and school setting. In the school setting, observers rated the behavior of both the referred child and a control child, chosen by the classroom teacher. Results show adequate convergent validity between school observations and teacher versions of the Behavioral Assessment System for Children (BASC) and Conners Rating Scales. Few significant correlations were found between analog observation data and parent and teacher behavior ratings. Second, paired samples t-tests showed that the occurrence of four of the five observed behaviors were significantly greater for referred children than for teacher-selected control children in the classroom. Lastly, results of a MANOVA , grouping by diagnosis (i.e., ADHD and no-ADHD), showed a significantly higher frequency of target behavior in the ADHD than the no-ADHD group. Results support the validity of school observations for differentiating between ADHD and non-ADHD clinical groups. Furthermore, it appears that school observations which offer comparison data between target and control children may be also be useful. The difference scores for vocalizing, out of seat, and fidgeting behavior, specifically, appear to hold promise for distinguishing between ADHD and no-ADHD clinical groups.

Download

Share

COinS