Investigation of a direct intervention for improving attention in young children with ADHD

The efficacy of a new set of child-oriented direct intervention materials, Pay Attention!(1994), was investigated in 14 children, ages 7 to 11 years, diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Treatment a nd control groups were matched for age, sex, and medication status. Both gr oups completed pre- and posttraining assessment batteries that included psy chometric measures of attention, a measure of academic efficiency, and beha vioral rating scales completed by parents and teachers. Results indicate th at children who received the direct intervention did significantly better o n a number of nontrained measures of attention and academic efficiency. Beh avioral ratings of inattention-impulsivity and hyperactivity completed by p arents did not differ following treatment, although a marginally significan t improvement in inattention-impulsivity was noted by school teachers. Thes e results suggest that direct interventions aimed at improving attention ma y be a valuable treatment option for improving cognitive efficiency in chil dren with ADHD and warrant further investigation.