Poster #39 - The Relation Between ADHD Symptomology and Intentional Self-regulation in Early Adolescence: Effects on Academic Achievement

• In Event: 3-159 - Poster Session 12
  In Poster Session: PS 12 Section - Cognitive Process

Integrative Statement

The contribution of self-regulation to school achievement has received much attention (e.g., McClelland et al., 2017). Problems with self-regulation have also been implicated in Attention-Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD; e.g., Barkley, 2011). Further, research has shown that children with attentional and hyperactivity problems face various challenges over the course of their academic lives (e.g., DuPaul & Kern, 2011). However, research on self-regulation and ADHD has developed relatively independently from one another, with studies on self-regulation typically focusing on the general population and research on ADHD-like behaviors on clinical samples. As such, little is known about the extent and nature of the relation between the two constructs and how they may interact to impact school success. Although ADHD has been implicated with self-regulation, research has mostly focused on the relation of ADHD and executive functioning (EF), a facet of self-regulation often considered to subserve intentional self-regulation (ISR) (e.g., McClelland et al., 2017). Less is known about the relation between ADHD and higher-order self-regulatory processes such as ISR. This study explored the relations between ADHD symptomology, self-regulation (both general and specific to the academic domain), and academic achievement in early adolescence, in a non-clinical, community sample in Iceland. We also assessed whether ISR mediate the effects of ADHD symptoms on academic achievement. In the current study, data was collected from a community sample of 352 Icelandic youths (mean age 10.7 years, SD = 0.3; 56% girls). Academic outcomes (mean grade, reading comprehension, writing ability and mathematical skill), were measured two year later. ADHD symptoms were assessed using a behavioral rating scale (ADHD-IV Rating Scale; DuPaul et al., 1998). ISR was measured by the Selection, Optimization and Compensation (SOC, Freund & Baltes, 2002) model and a measure of Self-Regulated Learning (SRL; Bandura, 2006). The two measures of self-regulation were strongly correlated. Partial correlations between behavioral ratings of ADHD symptoms and measures of ISR (SOC and SRL) (controlling for age at time of measurement, gender and SES) showed a weak but signifant relationship between the constructs (see Table 1). ADHD symptoms were significant as a predictor of all academic outcomes. ISR also consistently predicted academic achievement, with the domain specific SRL being the stronger predictor. A series of regression analyses were used to investigate whether self-regulatory skills mediated the effect of ADHD symptoms on achievement. ADHD symptoms predicted outcomes on both measures of self-regulation. Mediation analyses showed that SRL partially mediated the effects of ADHD on average grade, math and writing, but not on reading comprehension. SOC, the more global measure of ISR, although associated with ADHD symptomology, did not mediate the association between ADHD symptoms and academic achievement. The results suggest that some of the effects of ADHD-like symptoms on academic outcomes are mediated through intentional self-regulation, varying by academic domain. The current study highlights the importance of further assessing the relation of ADHD, ISR, and academic outcomes. It would be interesting to study how EFs affect these relations, as well as other constructs associated with ADHD and could affect ISR, such as motivation.

Authors

• Johanna Cortes Andresdottir, University of Iceland
  Presenting Author

• Steinunn Gestsdottir, University of Iceland
  Non-Presenting Author

• Freyja Birgisdottir, University of Iceland
  Non-Presenting Author