TITLE:
Decision Making in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
AUTHORS:
Akira Yasumura, Yoshiyuki Takimoto, Eisuke Nakazawa, Masumi Inagaki
KEYWORDS:
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD), Decision Making, Informed Consent
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Pediatrics,
Vol.6 No.2,
June
6,
2016
ABSTRACT: Background:
Informed consent forms and clinical study participation explanations contain
many specialized words including medical terms that are difficult to
understand. The difficulty is particularly obvious for children with
developmental disorders who show attention or similar problems. This study
quantitatively evaluated the decision-making ability of these children using
the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-III (WISC-III) as a preliminary
study for a multi-faceted investigation that would also use physiological indices.
Methods: Participants were 11 children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity
Disorder (AD/HD). The WISC-III was used for quantitative evaluation of their
decision-making ability. Results of intelligence quotients (IQs), group
indices, and subtest scores were analyzed. Results: The mean Performance IQ was
four points lower than the mean Verbal IQ. The mean score for the Processing
Speed index was lower by more than one standard deviation (SD). The mean scores
for the Coding and Object Assembly subtests were lower by more than two SDs. Conclusion:
The WISC-III results for IQ and group indices suggested the efficacy of
auditory explanations. In addition, the subtest results suggested the necessity
to pay sufficient attention to risk-benefit weighting in explanations. These
findings suggested that the decision-making ability of children with AD/HD could
be assessed using the WISC-III.