Academic task persistence of normally achieving ADHD and control boys: Performance, self-evaluations, and attributions

The authors examined academic task persistence, pretask expectancies, self- evaluations, and attributions of boys with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as compared with control boys. Participants were 83 ADHD bo ys and 66 control boys, all normally achieving. Prior to the task, performa nce expectancies were assessed. After a success-failure manipulation with f ind-a-word puzzles, performance on subsequent trials, self-evaluations, and attributions were evaluated. Compared with controls, ADHD boys solved fewe r test puzzles, quit working more often, and found fewer words on a general ization task. Consistent with these behavioral findings, research assistant s rated ADHD boys as less effortful and less cooperative than control boys. Although ADHD boys did not differ significantly from controls in their pos ttask self-evaluations, they did differ significantly from controls in some aspects of their attributions. Attributional data indicated that ADHD boys endorsed luck as a reason for success more strongly and lack of effort as a reason for failure less strongly than controls.