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ADHD Behaviors and Social Functioning in Preschool Children: The Moderating Role of Emotion Recognition

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Abstract

This study examined the moderating role of emotion recognition on the association between preschoolers’ ADHD behaviors and social functioning outcomes. Sixty preschoolers (48.3% female; Mage = 3.94, SDage = .56) were recruited from Head Start-affiliated classrooms. Teacher-rated ADHD behaviors and an objective measure of children’s emotion recognition were assessed at the beginning of the school year. Teacher ratings of social functioning outcomes were obtained approximately three months after the start of school. Hierarchical regressions examined the unique and interactive effects of ADHD behaviors and emotion recognition on preschoolers’ social functioning outcomes (i.e., oppositional behaviors, peer behavior problems, and social-emotional school readiness). The interaction between ADHD behaviors and emotion recognition predicted oppositional behaviors, peer behavior problems and social-emotional school readiness such that higher levels of emotion recognition appear to buffer the negative association between ADHD behaviors and adaptive social functioning. Preliminary considerations for interventions aimed at promoting preschoolers’ social functioning are discussed.

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These data are not in the public domain.

Code Availability

All data was analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics Version 26 and Mplus version 8 using standard syntax. Code is not available in the public domain.

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Funding

The current study was supported in part by monies provided through the State of Vermont Department of Health. However, although this work product was funded in whole or in part with monies provided by or through the State of Vermont, the State does not necessarily endorse the researchers’ findings and/or conclusions. The findings and/or conclusions may be inconsistent with the State’s policies, programs, and objectives.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychological Science, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, 05405, USA

    Allison Krasner, Marissa Dennis, Erin K. Shoulberg, Betsy Hoza & Hannah Scott

  2. Bradley/Hasbro Children’s Research Center, Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA

    Caroline P. Martin

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  1. Allison Krasner
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  2. Marissa Dennis
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  3. Erin K. Shoulberg
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Correspondence to Allison Krasner.

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Krasner, A., Dennis, M., Shoulberg, E.K. et al. ADHD Behaviors and Social Functioning in Preschool Children: The Moderating Role of Emotion Recognition. J Psychopathol Behav Assess 44, 725–737 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-022-09957-9

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