A New Way to Look at the Attention-Deficit/Hyperactive Child or Adolescent

By Royal E. Alsup, Ph.D.

The strengths and weaknesses of children and adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are easily recognized when the behavioral qualities of these children are spelled out as part of their temperament profile. The following nine characteristics outlined in this temperament and traits approach to ADHD help educators and parents replace labeling techniques with compassionate and useful understanding. Dr. Carey's book, Understanding Your Child's Temperament, offers fresh beginnings to teachers and parents as they struggle to understand and help the ADHD child.

High Activity

The ADHD child's high level of activity is considered appropriate or inappropriate according to situation or context in which the behavior takes place. Playing football and dancing require high activity performances. Movie theaters and classrooms demand low activity levels. For example, moving around the classroom without permission and fidgeting or squirming in one's seat is usually seen as inappropriate hyperactivity. ADHD children have difficulty determining the correct behavior for the situations in which they find themselves on a daily basis. It is estimated that fifty to sixty percent of ADHD children suffer from learning disabilities that can interfere with their being able to appropriately self-control their high activity behavior in any given situation.

Low Regularity

Sleep disturbance is a primary area that reveals low regularity in ADHD children. Irregularity in sleeping causes them to be grumpy and impatient with teachers and peers. At times the tiredness makes it very hard for the ADHD child to get out of bed and to arrive at school on time. School absence and class tardiness disrupt the process of bonding to the school. It is difficult for ADHD children to achieve a comfortable "fit" in a school environment that demands regularity. Sleep disturbance and inattention problems eventually make schoolwork feel negative.

Risk Taking or Bold Initial Reaction

Risk taking behaviors, which often lead to physical injury, alert playground teachers and bring negative attention to ADHD children. Boldness may take the form of challenging authority figures when first meeting them and breaking rules by coming to class stoned or carrying cigarettes on campus. This can be the start of the oppositional defiant disorder that sometimes is mixed with ADHD. A positive aspect of bold, risk-taking behavior is that it can be channeled into things like sports, dance or drama. Participating in these areas can help ADHD children bond with the school if the child perceives such activities as rewarding.

Low Adaptability

Inattention-sluggishness and hyperactivity-impulsivity make it difficult for an ADHD child to fit with and adapt to friends, teachers and parents. Impulsivity causes ADHD children to blurt out answers and talk out of turn in the classroom. Peers get impatient with them and do not want to be associated with them. Many do not get invited to slumber parties, dances or off campus activities. The resulting isolation and alienation are painful for ADHD children and their parents.

Environmental support of the ADHD temperament is essential for these children to flourish. ADHD children can be taught social skills to improve their relationships in most areas of their lives. Remember to support and praise these children when they do what is right. Encouragement goes a long way.

High Intensity

Coerciveness brings out the harsh, high intensity level of the child, along with oppositional defiant behavior. Often ADHD children have a negative reputation because they are quick to challenge the authoritarian teacher or parent. Positive parenting and teaching with reasonable expectations usually works more effectively with these children. When parents or teachers lower their intensity, the child usually lowers his intensity. With the intensity level lowered, the real needs of parent and child can emerge so that a true partnership and a real intimacy may develop out of the passion between them.

Negative Mood

Negative moods originate out of the high intensity, anger and aggression of ADHD children. They often suffer from depression because of peer rejection and low school achievement. Agitated depression makes them impatient and hostile toward themselves and others. Internalizing the anger and hostility makes them feel worthless, hopeless and helpless. Negative mood as a trait does not necessarily cause depression. It depends on how the temperaments of the parents and teachers fit with this particular ADHD trait. The child needs to be reminded and encouraged to take ownership of his negative mood in such a way that he realizes it is part of who he is. Catch your ADHD child in positive and sociable moods to reinforce the relationship bond. Encouraging positive relationships helps the ADHD child try harder to be pleasant with siblings and teachers.

Low Persistence and Attention Span

Poor school performance because of a low attention span defeats the learning spirit of some ADHD students. Many are successful in school when they are given special education that helps them organize tasks and learn in shorter segments, with contingent support and praise. ADHD students work well with periodic breaks and encouragement. Putting ADHD students in time-out and sending them to the office adds to their isolation and self-hate. Reward efforts to complete homework rather than focus on the final grade. Immediate, easily identified reinforcement will improve persistence and attention span.

High Distractibility

Inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity are behaviors that originate in the high distractibility trait of the ADHD child. The school environment is demanding for ADHD children and out of the need to survive they protect themselves from stimulus overload. They can become hyperactive and impulsive as their inability to focus and concentrate becomes more problematic, and so they may shut down and refuse to participate. Teachers often misunderstand the stonewalling behavior of ADHD children, accusing them of being disobedient rather than seeing them as trying to limit the challenges to their distractibility. The misunderstanding brings out the high intensity and negative mood of the ADHD child, causing cursing, screaming and yelling. Being required to work on long, demanding, monotonous projects and expending unrelenting mental effort aggravate the distractibility problem of the ADHD child and may cause anxiety and depression.

High Sensitivity

ADHD children are easily overwhelmed by too much stimuli because of their high sensitivity level, causing them to experience fear, anger, excitement, surprise, sadness and general disorientation. Older ADHD children may self-medicate through substance abuse to help them manage or to reduce the disruptive stimuli.

It is beneficial to reduce the amount of stimuli at home and school. Instructions for chores need to be clear and brief. Directions can be written out in simple steps, with immediate rewards upon completion. It is always wise to remember the rule of reasonable expectations for ADHD children-accentuate the positive and eliminate the negative. Repeating instructions often and providing immediate reinforcement for compliance are so important.

Conclusion

The temperament approach to understanding ADHD is very helpful in explaining the reasons for the frustrating and challenging behaviors and characteristics of ADHD children and adolescents. A strong spiritual life will help parents and teachers during the difficult time of dealing with the ADHD child. Good solid research indicates that most relationships, such as between parent and child or husband and wife, need five positive rewards to every negative consequence in order for the relationship to work.

The Spirit brings love, compassion and patience to help parents teach ADHD children that these traits are internal. Only when they attain this awareness, usually in adolescence, can ADHD children learn self-control and self-monitoring. The Spirit introduces meaning and purpose, generosity and support to parents and teachers who have been put in charge of these highly sensitive children who suffer from isolation and rejection. Love is the gift from the Spirit that occurs between parents and children as the I and Thou experience.

References

Barkley, R. A. (1997). ADHD and the Nature of Self-Control. New York: Guilford Press.

Carey, W. B. (1997). Understanding Your Child's Temperament. New York: Macmillan.

Kronenberger, W. G. & Mayer, R. G. (1996). The Child Clinician's Handbook. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

McCord, J. (Ed.) (1995). Coercion and Punishment in Long-term Perspectives. New York: Cambridge University Press.