title: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder severity, diagnosis, & later academic achievement in a national sample.
abstract: Although 11% (6.4 million) American children are diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), the role of ADHD severity in shaping the association between ADHD diagnosis and academic achievement is not understood. Using a nationally-representative sample of 7830 U.S. kindergartners from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort, we use regression and propensity score matching to compare diagnosed (N = 350) and undiagnosed children who are cognitively, behaviorally, and demographically similar. Diagnosed children with less severe ADHD-related behaviors on average scored lower in reading (-0.30 SD) and math (-0.22 SD) than their undiagnosed peers - a difference two times larger than that between diagnosed and undiagnosed children with more severe ADHD-related behaviors. Pharmacological treatment did not attenuate most of this "diagnostic labeling effect" among children with less severe ADHD-related behaviors. Negative factors associated with an ADHD diagnosis may outweigh potential benefits for achievement among children with less severe ADHD-related behaviors, even those receiving treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology and Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA. Electronic address: jayanti_owens@brown.edu.
authors.forename: Jayanti
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Owens
authors.affiliation: Center on Aging and Health, Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Heide
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jackson
mesh_terms: D000076363:Academic Success; D000124:Achievement; D000293:Adolescent; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000175:diagnosis*; D001290:Attitude; D002648:Child; D002652:Child Behavior; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008433:Mathematics; D010290:Parents; D011932:Reading; D000070777:School Teachers; D012574:Schools; D012649:Self Concept; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D066252:Sociological Factors
keywords: Academic achievement; Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); Behavioral development; Child health; Cognitive development; Education; Mental health; Stigma