Activity in children with ADHD during waiting situations in the classroom: a pilot study

According to the optimal stimulation theory and the delay aversion hypothesis, children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience difficulties when they are confronted with low levels of stimulation and delay, respectively.

This study investigated the activity level of children with ADHD during waiting situations in the classroom. Three series of hypothesis were made: (1) with respect to the comparison between waiting and non-waiting intervals, (2) with respect to the effects of non-temporal stimulation, and (3) with respect to the effects of temporal stimulation on behaviour during waiting.

The activity level of 14 children with ADHD and 14 control children between the ages of 6 and 11 years was observed during two non-waiting class situations and three waiting situations: without any stimulation, in the presence of nontemporal stimulation and in the presence of temporal stimulation.

Both groups of children obtained higher activity scores for all behavioural dimensions during waiting compared with non-waiting situations. The results further revealed additive effects of waiting and diagnostic group on behaviour. Additional nontemporal stimulation during waiting affected the behaviour of all children for most behavioural characteristics. For noisiness, additive effects were also found for diagnostic group and either non-temporal stimulation or temporal stimulation. For restlessness, a trend for an interaction effect between diagnostic group and nontemporal stimulation was found.

The findings have clear implications for school observations within an assessment protocol.