Farzaneh Nazemi,; Parisa Tajali; Majid Ebrahimpour; Mahdieh Salehy
Abstract
Abstract
The aim of this study was to examine the impact of a child self-regulation program on the self-perception and friendship quality of children diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The study employed a semi-experimental research design with a pre-test-post-test methodology ...
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Abstract
The aim of this study was to examine the impact of a child self-regulation program on the self-perception and friendship quality of children diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The study employed a semi-experimental research design with a pre-test-post-test methodology and a control group. The statistical population for this research comprised all 9-12-year-old girls diagnosed with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) in Tehran during the 2021-2022 period. The sample size consisted of 30 participants, with 15 assigned to the experimental group and 15 to the control group, selected from the statistical population using an available sampling method. While the control group remained on the waiting list, the experimental group received a child self-regulation program. The research instruments utilized were Harter's self-perception scale (2012) and Zohrevand and Hejazi's (2001) friendship quality assessment. The results indicated that the self-regulation intervention had a significant impact on enhancing self-perception and friendship quality during the post-test and follow-up stages. These findings provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of self-regulation programs, which can be utilized by counselors and psychologists to enhance self-perception and friendship quality among children with ADHD.
Extended abstract
Introduction
Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that often starts in childhood and continues into adulthood (Singh, Kumar, Kaur, Mandal & Kumar, 2022). Literature shows that children with ADHD overestimate their own competence (Varma & Wiener, 2020); for example, in this population, their self-perceptions are often inconsistent with objective measures of performance or parent and teacher ratings of competence. This may lead children with ADHD to have unrealistic self-perceptions (Hoza, Mrug, Gerdes, Hinshaw, Bukowski, Gold & et al., 2005). However, studies show that children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have less stable friendships compared to neurotypical children (Powell, Riglin, Ng-Knight, Frederickson, Woolf, McManus & et al., 2021) and tend to be more friendly with people who have a learning or behavioral problem (Marton, Wiener, Rogers & Moore, 2015). Current strategies for treating children with ADHD mainly focus on pharmacological treatments, but these treatments often do not meet children's and families' needs (Villodas, McBurnett, Kaiser, Rooney & Pfiffner, 2014), and have shown a limited effect (Swanson, Baler & Volkow, 2011). As such, the importance of psychological interventions, especially self-regulation interventions, is becoming increasingly important to reduce and even resolve these problems in individuals with ADHD. The use of self-regulation interventions, such as cognitive behavior therapy, is one of the most common and widely used interventions, and it can be very effective (Guderjahn, Gold, Stadler & Gawrilow, 2013).
Research Questions
Does the child's self-regulation program effectively change the self-perception of children with ADHD?
Does the child's self-regulation program effectively improve the quality of friendship in children with ADHD?" or "What is the impact of a self-regulation program on the quality of friendship for children with ADHD?
Literature Review
In line with the effectiveness of self-regulation training, the results of Moradi, Hashemi, Farzad, Beyrami & Ketamati (2009) showed that teaching self-regulation strategies, motivational behaviors and verbal self-education have significant effects on reducing hyperactivity symptoms of students with ADHD. They are active. In another study, Ebrahimi & Taher (2019) found that self-regulation training is effective in increasing the social skills of students with mild mental retardation by improving the ability to plan, self-review and organize. The results of Abolghasemi, Barzegar & Rostamoghli (2015) also indicate the effectiveness of self-regulation training on improving students' self-efficacy and quality of life.
Methodology
The design of the research was semi-experimental with a pre-test-post-test design and follow-up with a control group. The sample consisted of female students aged 9 to 12 years with ADHD who were studying in schools in Tehran in 2022. The students were selected by education consultants who received a diagnosis of ADHD. For a more accurate diagnosis, a semi-structured clinical interview was conducted to these children. Finally, a sample of 30 students was selected based on the entry criteria and they were replaced in two experimental and control groups (15 experimental people, 15 control people). Both groups completed the Self-Perception Profile for Children (Harter, 2012) and the Friendship Quality Questionnaire (Hejazi & Zohrevand, 2001) as a pre-test. The experimental group then participated in 12 sessions of 45 minutes based on the child's self-regulation intervention, while the control group did not receive any intervention. Immediately after the end of the training sessions, the self-perception scale and the quality of friendship were assessed as a post-test for both groups. They were then followed up after 2 months.
results
The results of this analysis show that there was a significant interaction between stages (pre-test, post-test, follow-up) and groups (experimental and control) for several of the research variables, including self-perception and quality of friendship. The Bonferroni test indicated that the experimental and control groups were significantly different from each other in terms of the research variables at all stages of the study, and that the improvement in self-perception and the quality of friendship observed in the experimental group was stable over time and still present at the follow-up phase. Overall, these results suggest that the child's self-regulation education was effective in improving the self-perception and quality of friendship of the children in the experimental group, and that this effect was sustained over time.
Table 1: Results of analysis of variance with repeated measurements
Variable
Source of Changes
Total Squares
df
Mean of Squares
f
Sig.
Effect Size
Scholastic Competence
Time
208.067
2
104.033
100.832
0.001
0.78
Time×group
102.822
2
51.411
49.829
0.001
0.64
Social Competence
Time
108.022
1.280
84.385
23.720
0.001
0.46
Time×group
93.800
1.280
73.275
20.597
0.001
0.42
Athletic Competence
Time
25.956
1.640
15.831
10.297
0.001
0.27
Time×group
35.467
1.640
21.631
14.071
0.001
0.33
Physical Appearance
Time
89.689
2
44.844
45.531
0.001
0.61
Time×group
118.489
2
59.244
60.151
0.001
0.68
Behavioral Conduct
Time
171.089
2
85.544
70.819
0.001
0.71
Time×group
198.600
2
99.300
82.206
0.001
0.75
Self-Worth
Time
73.489
1.195
61.486
21.839
0.001
0.44
Time×group
38.289
1.195
32.035
11.378
0.001
0.29
quality of friendship
Time
320.267
1.173
273.041
74.979
0.001
0.72
Time×group
219.467
1.173
187.104
51.380
0.001
0.65
Keywords: Self-Regulation, Self-Perception, Friendship Quality, Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.