ADHD AND LONELINESS SOCIAL DISSATISFACTION IN INCLUSIVE SCHOOL FROM AN INDIVIDUAL-CONTEXT PARADIGM

Abstract

ADHD children can experience severe relational problems with peers, and individual treatments are not likely to eradicate peer problems. The school is the main arena in which peer difficulties develop and can be faced.Present study is aimed to explore the hypothesis that even in a fully inclusive educational system, like the Italian one, ADHD children would still experience peer difficulties if compared with children with other special needs, given the relational implications of the disturb. 31 ADHD children, 31 children with other special needs, 31 children with no special needs, matched by gender and age, were recruited from primary and low secondary State mainstream schools. The "Children's Loneliness and Social Dissatisfaction Rating Scale was administered to all children during class time. A single ANOVA test between the three groups and three planned comparisons were performed on the perceived loneliness and social dissatisfaction scores. The results showed low levels of perceived loneliness and social dissatisfaction for all groups. However, 30% of ADHD children showed a perceived loneliness and social dissatisfaction level twice than the other children, confirming the hypothesis that children with ADHD are at risk of isolation even within a fully inclusive environment.The authors interpretated the results according to a relational perspective, in which ADHD symptoms are not seen as totally dependant on the disorder in itself, but also a specific result of the relational system in which the child is part of. Implications regarding educational strategies and intervention strategies are discussed.