Academic and social impairments of elementary school children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

This study examined academic and social impairments of 6- to 11-year-old children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; n = 101) versus other referred children without ADHD (n = 53) and controls (n = 24). Parent and teacher ratings showed significantly lower academic performance and lower social functioning for children with ADHD compared to other referred children without ADHD and controls. Children with ADHD scored significantly lower than controls on standardized tests of reading/language, mathematics, and written language, and lower than referred children without ADHD on mathematics. In multiple regression analyses, cognitive ability accounted for the most variance in predicting academic performance. Diagnostic status (ADHD vs. non-ADHD) accounted for the most variance in predicting parent and teacher ratings of social skills and school adaptive behavior. Significantly more children with ADHD than those without ADHD exhibited clinically significant impairment on five measures of academic performance and six measures of social behavior. Implications are discussed for assessing patterns of impairment associated with ADHD and designing appropriate academic and social interventions for students with ADHD.