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Academic Achievement Over 8 Years Among Children Who Met Modified Criteria for Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder at 4–6 Years of Age

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Abstract

The predictive validity of symptom criteria for different subtypes of ADHD among children who were impaired in at least one setting in early childhood was examined. Academic achievement was assessed seven times over 8 years in 125 children who met symptom criteria for ADHD at 4–6 years of age and in 130 demographically-matched non-referred comparison children. When intelligence and other confounds were controlled, children who met modified criteria for the predominantly inattentive subtype of ADHD in wave 1 had lower reading, spelling, and mathematics scores over time than both comparison children and children who met modified criteria for the other subtypes of ADHD. In some analyses, children who met modified criteria for the combined type had somewhat lower mathematics scores than comparison children. The robust academic deficits relative to intelligence in the inattentive group in this age range suggest either that inattention results in academic underachievement or that some children in the inattentive group have learning disabilities that cause secondary symptoms of inattention. Unexpectedly, wave 1 internalizing (anxiety and depression) symptoms independently predicted deficits in academic achievement controlling ADHD, intelligence, and other predictors.

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Acknowledgement

This study was supported by grant R01 MH053554 from the National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Massetti was supported by American Psychological Association/Institute of Education Sciences Postdoctoral Education Research Training fellowship under Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences grant number R305UO30004. Dr. Massetti is currently a Behavioral Scientist in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Violence Prevention within the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Psychology and Pediatrics, University at Buffalo, SUNY, Buffalo, NY, USA

    Greta M. Massetti & William E. Pelham

  2. Department of Psychiatry, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    Benjamin B. Lahey, Ashley Ehrhardt & Steve S. Lee

  3. Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA

    Jan Loney

  4. Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

    Heidi Kipp

  5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford Highway NE, Atlanta, GA, 30341, USA

    Greta M. Massetti

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  1. Greta M. Massetti
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  2. Benjamin B. Lahey
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  3. William E. Pelham
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  4. Jan Loney
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  5. Ashley Ehrhardt
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  6. Steve S. Lee
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  7. Heidi Kipp
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Correspondence to Greta M. Massetti.

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Massetti, G.M., Lahey, B.B., Pelham, W.E. et al. Academic Achievement Over 8 Years Among Children Who Met Modified Criteria for Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder at 4–6 Years of Age. J Abnorm Child Psychol 36, 399–410 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-007-9186-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-007-9186-4

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