Study skills and habits in adolescents with attention deficit disorder with or without hyperactivity

Abstract

A high percentage of adolescents with attention deficit disorder (with or without hyperactivity [ADHD]) fail to become academically successful because, among other reasons, they have poor study-organisation and lack the skills and resources to tackle homework. The aim of this study was to first determine, and then improve, the study habits and skills of such individuals, using a quasi-experimental design (pre-test-treatment application-post-test). The sample consisted of 20 students without ADHD in Secondary Education (specifically, 5 from each course and aged between 12 and 16 years), and 6 adolescents with ADHD. The evaluation instrument utilized was the Study Habits Inventory in Spanish (Fernández-Pozar, 2002). The results highlighted that the sample of adolescents with ADHD were lacking in all scales measured in the Study Habits Inventory (adaptation to the study-environment, planning of study, use of materials, and assimilation of contents), with their scores being significantly lower than the sample of adolescents without ADHD, in terms of environmental adjustment, and improvements in most other measurements when receiving specialised educational attention.