Academic Underachievement and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: The Negative Impact of Symptom Severity on School Performance

Many children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) achieve academically at a lower level than would be predicted given their intellectual abilities. However, the extent to which this is due to behavioral problems versus cognitive deficits associated with the disorder is unclear. In the present study, a group of children with ADHD (with average intellectual abilities) performed significantly below prediction in reading, writing, and mathematics skills and demonstrated a greater discrepancy between actual and predicted achievement than did a group of non-ADHD children. Even when controlling for performance on a measure of executive functioning, severity of ADHD symptoms, based on parent report, significantly predicted academic underachievement in reading, writing, and mathematics. These results indicate that the more severe the behavioral symptomatology of children with ADHD is, the more negatively impacted their school performance may be. Results are discussed in terms of diagnostic and intervention implications.