Fine motor deficits and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in primary school children

South African Journal of Psychiatry

 
 
Field Value
 
Title Fine motor deficits and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in primary school children
 
Creator Mokobane, Maria Pillay, Basil J. Meyer, Anneke
 
Subject Psychology; Neuropsychology ADHD; Subtypes; Motor functions; Grooved pegboard; Maze coordination task; Primary school children
Description Background: Many children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) display motor deficiencies during their daily routine, which may have impact on their developmental course. Children with ADHD who experience motor deficiencies often display deficits in tasks requiring movements, such as handwriting.Aim: This study investigated deficiencies in fine motor skills in primary school children with ADHD. The study further sought to establish whether ADHD subtypes differ in deficiencies of fine motor performance, recorded for both the dominant and non-dominant hands.Methods: The Disruptive Behavior Disorders Rating Scale, completed by educators and parents, was used to screen for ADHD symptoms. Researchers confirmed the diagnosis of ADHD. Motor functioning was assessed using the Grooved Pegboard and Maze Coordination. The children diagnosed with ADHD were matched for age and gender with controls without ADHD. The sample consisted of an ADHD group (160) and control group (160) of primary school children from the Moletjie area.Results: Children with ADHD (predominantly inattentive subtype) and ADHD (combined subtype) performed significantly more poorly than the control group on the Grooved Pegboard (p  0.05) with both the dominant and non-dominant hand. No significant difference between the hyperactivity and impulsiveness subtype and the controls were found. There was no difference on the Maze Coordination Task (p  0.05) between the ADHD subtypes and the controls.Conclusion: Difficulties in fine motor skills are prevalent in children with ADHD, particularly in the ADHD-PI and ADHD-C. Problems are encountered in distal, complex, speeded tasks. The effect may lead to poor handwriting and academic performance.
 
Publisher AOSIS
 
Contributor College Research Office at the University of Kwa Zulu-Natal
Date 2019-01-22
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — quantitative, case-control experimental design was used.
Format text/html application/epub+zip application/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/sajpsychiatry.v25i0.1232
 
Source South African Journal of Psychiatry; Vol 25 (2019); 7 pages 2078-6786 1608-9685
 
Language eng
 
Relation
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:

https://sajp.org.za/index.php/sajp/article/view/1232/1364 https://sajp.org.za/index.php/sajp/article/view/1232/1363 https://sajp.org.za/index.php/sajp/article/view/1232/1365 https://sajp.org.za/index.php/sajp/article/view/1232/1362
 
Coverage South Africa, Limpopo, Capricorn District June 2015-April 2018 Primary school children from five schools, grade one to grade seven
Rights Copyright (c) 2019 Maria Mokobane, Basil Josrph Pillay, Anneke M Meyer https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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