مجله علوم روانشناختی (Feb 2017)
The effectiveness of motor based cognitive rehabilitation on improvement of working memory of children with ADHD
Abstract
Attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder is one of the most prevalent neurodevelopmental psychiatric disorders with defects in executive functions as its general feature. The present study was conducted to explore the effects of motor-based cognitive rehabilitation on improvement of working memory in children with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder. The present quasi-experimental study followed a randomized clinical trial design (pretest-posttest with control group). A total of 30 children, aged between 7-12,who had referred to different clinics in Tehran and were diagnosed by a psychiatrist with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, were selected using convenience sampling, and then were randomly divided into control and experimental groups. The working memory was evaluated via recording N-Back test. independent t-test and mixed ANOVA were run in SPSS (v. 20) to analyze the data. The results of the present study demonstrated that working memory of the experimental group improved after the intervention (P<0/01). In other words, the little difference observed in the pretest between the control and experimental groups in working memory was not significant; however, the scores obtained in the post-test were observed to be significantly higher in the experimental group as compared with those in the control group. The results of the statistical analyses shows that gesture-based cognitive rehabilitation therapy improved working memory in children with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder.
