The symptoms of ADHD can cause many challenges for children and adolescents in school. Today, traditional learning environments are challenged by more open, flexible learning environments. However, there is only little earlier research on classroom experiences in flexible learning environments and classroom experiences comparing traditional and flexible learning environments have not been studied from the perspective of students with ADHD symptoms. In addition, previous research has shown that students with symptoms of ADHD often experience lower self-esteem than their peers. It is also known that girls are more likely to report lower self-esteem than boys. The purpose of this study is to examine how students at risk for ADHD experience their self-esteem, engagement, autonomy, relatedness and competence in traditional and flexible learning environments. In addition, this study examines whether there is a gender difference in the above-mentioned experiences. The theoretical basis of the research is the self-determination theory, to which autonomy, competence, relatedness and engagement are essentially connected. The data was collected from students in grades 7 and 8 who had participated in the Learning, grouping, evaluation and well-being in large learning areas project of the city of Vantaa and the University of Helsinki Education Assessment Center in 2019–2020. Of all 7–8th graders (N 1446), students at risk of ADHD (n 113) were selected for the study. Spearman’s correlation coefficient was used to examine the connections between attention, self-esteem, and the components of self-determination theory. Next, the analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to examine whether there is a difference between traditional and flexible learning environments in self-esteem, autonomy, competence, relatedness and student engagement in students at risk for ADHD. The same method of analysis was used again to examine whether there is a gender difference in self-esteem, autonomy, competence, relatedness and student engagement in students in the risk group of ADHD. The data was analyzed by using IBM SPSS Statistics 26. The results showed that the experiences of self-esteem and the components of self-determination theory (student engagement, autonomy, relatedness and competence) did not differ depending on the learning environment in students at risk of ADHD between traditional and open plan (flexible) learning environments. However, experiences of self-esteem, autonomy and engagement among at-risk students in ADHD differed between the sexes, with girls having lower self-esteem and experiencing less autonomy and engagement than boys.

Abstract Background Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent and multifactorial neuropsychiatric disorder in the human population worldwide. Complex etiology and clinical heterogeneity have challenged the research, diagnostics and treatment of the disease. Hyperactive and impulsive behaviour has also been observed in dogs, and they could offer a physiologically relevant model for human ADHD. As a part of our ongoing study to understand the molecular etiology of canine anxiety traits, this study was aimed to pilot an approach to identify metabolic biomarkers in canine ADHD-like behaviours for research, diagnostics and treatment purposes. Methods We collected fresh plasma samples from 22 German Shepherds with varying ADHD-like behaviours. All dogs were on the same controlled diet for 2 weeks prior to sampling. A liquid chromatography combined with mass spectrometry (LC–MS)-based non-targeted metabolite profiling was performed to identify plasma metabolites correlating with the ADHD-like behaviour of the dogs. Results 649 molecular features correlated with ADHD-like behavioural scores (praw < 0.05), and three of them [sn-1 LysoPC(18:3), PC(18:3/18:2) and sn-1 LysoPE(18:2)] had significant correlations also after FDR correction (pFDR < 0.05). Phospholipids were found to negatively correlate with ADHD-like behavioural scores, whereas tryptophan metabolites 3-indolepropionic acid (IPA) and kynurenic acid (KYNA) had negative and positive correlations with ADHD-like behavioural scores, respectively. Conclusions Our study identified associations between canine ADHD-like behaviours and metabolites that are involved in lipid and tryptophan metabolisms. The identified metabolites share similarity with earlier findings in human and rodent ADHD models. However, a larger replication study is warranted to validate the discoveries prior to further studies to understand the biological role of the identified metabolites in canine ADHD-like behaviours.

Tutkimuskohteena on ADHD-identiteetin ilmeneminen ADHD Aikuiset ry:n keskustelufoorumilla. Tutkimuksen taustalla vaikuttaa se, että ADHD on representoinut viime vuosina yleisesti tunnistetuksi oireyhtymäksi myös aikuisilla. Analysoin internet-keskusteluja toisaalta sosiaalisen roolin näkökulmasta ja toisaalta narratiivisena tarinana. Erving Goffmanin teatterimetafora hahmottaa, miten ADHD paikantuu arkielämän näyttämöllä. ADHD:llakin on erilainen rooli eri kehyksissä. ADHD-foorumi toimii takanäyttämönä ja sen keskusteluja kuvaan autenttisena. Takanäyttämöllä ADHD-henkilö saa vertaistukea omiensa joukossa. Sosiaalinen ja julkinen maailma toimii etunäyttämönä, jolla ADHD-yksilö joutuu kompensoimaan puutteitaan ja hillitsemään käyttäytymistään antaakseen itsestään yleisesti hyväksyttävän vaikutelman. Sosiaalinen kuri velvoittaa pitämään naamion paikallaan. Jäsentelen keskusteluja myös Greimasin narratiivisen aktanttimallin avulla jakamalla ne kolmeen vaiheeseen: valmistelevaan tarinaa, päätarinaan ja vahvistavaan tarinaan. Tarinat ilmentävät jatkuvuutta, sisäistä prosessointia sekä aktiivista toimijuutta. Tarinan päähenkilönä on ADHD-diagnoosia hakeva aikuinen. Tarinan valmistelevassa vaiheessa yksilö ilmestyy keskustelufoorumille kuvaillen oireitaan ja kysyy, olisiko hänellä ADHD. Päätarinan vaiheessa yksilö on yleensä hyväksynyt ajatuksen ADHD:staan. Diagnosointi toimii kuitenkin varsinaisena päätestinä, jonka aikana yksilö saa varmuuden omasta ADHD-identiteetistään.Vahvistavana tarinana kuvaan elämistä tämän uuden tietoisuuden ja ehkä lääkkeidenkin kanssa. ADHD-tarina ei kuitenkaan lopu aktanttimallin viimeiseen, vahvistavaan vaiheeseen, eikä ADHD:sta parannuta pelkällä lääkityksellä. Diagnoosi on vasta välitavoite matkalla kohti elämänhallintaa ja itsensä hyväksymistä.

The purpose of this study was to find out what kind of status siblings have in a family in which one child has ADHD. In the background, there was a doubt regarding sibling equality in a family in which one child needs substantially more parental time and attention. In Finland, no similar studies have been made. The study used Brofenbrenner's ecological systems theory. The study involved five families with elementary school age children with ADHD. The families had a total of fifteen children. The parents and the siblings of these families were interviewed. The study was divided into four themes: (1) everyday family life, (2) feelings, (3) family roles and interpersonal skills of the family members, and (4) the importance of siblings in an ADHD child's life. The interviews were analyzed by content analysis. The research problems were: 1) How do parents and siblings perceive sibling status in their family? and 2) What is the significance of siblings in the life of a child with ADHD as assessed by the parents and the siblings themselves? Parents felt that the most significant factors as regards the status of siblings were the way the siblings take responsibly for the family's daily life, the siblings' own understanding of their family, family transparency, taking the siblings into consideration and dealing with their feelings in everyday life. A tight feeling of cohesion was a factor in empowering the family. Parents considered ADHD medication an important element of their family. The meaning of the siblings for an ADHD child's life was very significant. The siblings described their families as positive and lively. They had got used to the qualities and characteristics of the child with the diagnosis. They did not perceive the ADHD child as being a different child in their family. The siblings recognized their parents' fatigue and thought that the parents did not have enough time for them. However, they did not feel that the parents treated them unequally. The siblings reported that they looked after the ADHD child to some degree, but they thought that this was part of family life. The siblings described cooperation as strength of their family. As compared to international studies, converging factors concerning sibling position, sibling relationships and the ideal family functioning came up in the interviews in this study. Siblings' mental problems, which this investigation did not reveal, were an exception. Consistent with previous studies, parents' assumptions about sibling relationships were more positive than the siblings' descriptions. According to the study, an ADHD child's family relationships were a challenge, but with appropriate internal measures the position of siblings in a family can be good.

Aims of the present study: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), beginning in childhood and often continuing into adulthood, is a neurodevelopmental condition that impairs an individual’s functioning in everyday life. The disorder is characterized by impairments in attention regulation or impulse control, or both. Many of the symptoms are related to disturbances in attention, the ability to select behaviorally relevant stimuli and to filter out irrelevant information among the overwhelming amount of sensory data. Neural mechanisms of attention have been linked to oscillations in electophysiological brain activity at alpha frequencies (8–13 Hz), but information on alpha oscillations in adult ADHD has remained scarce. The aim of the present study was to examine differences in attention and distractibility related alpha oscillations between adult ADHD patients and neurotypical controls. Methods: Participants were instructed to attend moving spherical objects and to report color changes in the objects. Number of attended objects varied from one (in right or left visual hemifield) to two (one in both hemifields). In addition to the attended objects, participants were at times presented with distractors which they were instructed to ignore. Brain activity during task performance was measured with magnetoencephalography (MEG). Results and discussion: Behavioral performance was similar between the groups. However, alpha oscillations related to distractor processing differed in a statistically significant manner between ADHD patients and controls. Main differences were related to inter-hemispheric interactions, suggesting that attentional deficits in ADHD might be related to abnormalities between inter-hemispheric communication.

Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has detrimental effects on one's course of life. Educational underachievement can be identified as one of the most salient disparities over time, and therefore studying the mediating mechanisms is crucial. In previous studies, comorbidities and above-average positive bias in self-evaluations have been demonstrated to be associated with poorer prognosis. However, there are only a few longitudinal studies extending over decades. This master's thesis investigates psychiatric symptoms and social competence reported by parents and youths themselves at 16 years of age. The study also examined how these and the bias in their reporting predict educational level at thirty years of age. The data consisted of persons born in Kätilöopisto (1971–1974) who experienced pre- and perinatal risks. In childhood, part of them (n=122) had diagnostic criteria fulfilling symptoms of attention deficits and hyperactivity. In the follow-up, a non-ADHD (n=738) and a healthy control group born in the same hospital during the same period of time (n=194) were also assessed and compared to an ADHD group (N=1054). Psychiatric symptoms and social competence were measured by the Child Behavior Checklist and the Youth Self-Report. Information regarding educational level in adulthood was available from 570 participants. The ADHD-group had more psychiatric symptoms and lower social competence in adolescence than other groups, according to self-reports and parental reports. Additionally, educational level in adulthood was lower. In this study, an ADHD-associated above-average positive bias was not found. The size of a bias predicted educational level when the effects of covariants were taken into account. However, the predictive power was weaker than for self-reports or parent reports only. Psychiatric symptoms and social competence explained 13–18 % of variance in educational level in the data. Investing in psychosocial interventions with adolescents suffering from ADHD could prevent underachievement in adulthood.

Laajoissa tutkimuksissa on havaittu, miten alhainen syntymäpaino on yhteydessä moniin kroonisena kansantautina tunnettuihin sairauksiin kuten sepelvaltimotautiin, tyypin 2 diabetekseen ja verenpainetautiin. Mekanismin arvellaan liittyen elimistön ohjelmoimisena tunnettuun tapahtumaan, jossa raskauden kriittisessä vaiheessa tapahtunut ulkoinen ärsyke sotkee elimistön elimen kyvyn säädellä elimistön toimintoja. Tämä näkyy kohonneena sairausriskinä myöhemmällä iällä. Tutkimus keskosia kohtaan on lisääntynyt tasaisesti samaan aikaan, kun heidän henkiinjäämistodennäköisyys on parantunut keskoskaappien teknologisen kehityksen ansiosta. Vastaavasti alhaisen syntymäpainon tiedetään olevan riskitekijä myös ADHD:lle. ADHD:n kehityskulku noudattelee usein ongelmien kasaantuvaa kehitystä siten, että varhaisessa vaiheessa alkanut häiriö vaikuttaa henkilön koulunkäyntimenestykseen ja myöhempiin työuriin. ADHD:llä on voimakas perinnöllinen tausta ja se todetaan useammin pojilla kuin tytöillä. Huolimatta ADHD:n korkeasta periytyvyydestä sosiaalinen ympäristö on tärkeässä osassa siinä, ilmeneekö jokin periytyvä häiriö ja miten voimakkaasti tämä häiriö ilmenee. Tutkimuksessa pyritään kiinnittämään erityinen huomio sukupuolten välisiin eroihin ja sosioekonomisiin tekijöihin alhaisen syntymäpainon ja ADHD:n välillä. Tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan tarkemmin kompensatorisina tekijöinä äidin koulutustaustaa, perheen tuloja, perhetyyppiä ja maahanmuuttajataustaa. Tutkimuksen aineistona käytettiin Tilastokeskuksen ja Helsingin yliopiston sosiologian oppiaineen ylläpitämää EKSY014-rekisteriaineistoa. Aineisto sisältää 20 prosentin satunnaisotoksen kaikista Suomen kotitalouksista, joissa asui vuoden 2000 lopussa 0-14-vuotiaita lapsia (n = 415 000). Rekisterin pohjana toimivat Tilastokeskuksen, THL:n, Kelan sekä ETK:n rekisteritiedot,joiden väliset tiedot voidaan yhdistää keskenään. Lapsien syntymäpainotiedot on haettu THL:n ylläpitämästä syntymärekisteristä ja ADHD-oireiden tunnistamiseen käytettiin Kelan tietoja reseptilääkeostoista sekä THL:n hoitoilmoitusrekisterin sisältämiä tietoja. Varsinaiseen tutkimusotokseen kuului yhteensä 168 286 henkilöä. Tutkimuksen pääasiallisena menetelmänä käytettiin elinaikamallinnukseen kuuluvaa Coxin suhteellisten vaarojen menetelmää, jonka avulla eri syntymäpainoluokkien ja ADHD:n välistä suhteellisia vaaroja voitiin vertailla keskenään. Analyysin pohjalta havaittiin, miten lapsen alhainen syntymäpaino oli yhteydessä ADHD:hen siten, että riski kasvoi mitä kevyempiin syntymäpainoluokkiin tarkastelussa siirryttiin. Sukupuolten väliltä ei löydetty tilastollisesti merkitsevää eroa. Tämän lisäksi tutkimuksessa tarkasteltiin taustamuuttujien vakioimattomia yhteyksiä. Analyysin avulla kävi ilmi, että äidin alhainen koulutusaste, perheen matala tulotaso ja yksinhuoltajuus kasvattivat kaikki itsessään lapsen ADHD-riskiä. Tytöillä alle kilonpainoisten keskosten vakioimaton yhteys ADHD:n oli 5,27-kertainen ja pojilla 3,5-kertainen. Kun näiden ja useiden muiden sekoittavien tekijöiden vaikutusta tarkasteltiin alhaisen syntymäpainon ja ADHD:n välillä vakioimalla, säilyi alhaisen syntymäpainon kasvattava riski erittäin korkeana. Alle kilon painoisten tyttöjen kohdalla vakiointi nosti hieman yhteyden riskiä (5,36) ja pojilla yhteys hieman laski noin 2,5-kertaiseksi Tutkimuksen pohjalta ei havaittu sellaisia tekijöitä, joilla olisi ADHD:ltä suojaavaa tai altistavaa ulottuvuutta. Kun tupakointia ja alhaista syntymäpainoa tarkasteltiin yhteisinä riskitekijöinä, näyttäisi siltä, että näiden vaikutuksissa on selvästi päällekkäisyyttä ADHD-riskin suhteen. Tutkimuksessa havaittiin, miten tärkeässä osassa raskaudenaikaiset tekijät ja kriittiset kasvuvaiheet ovat myöhemmin ilmenevän terveyden kannalta. Tämän lisäksi tutkimuksessa havaittiin riskien kasaantumiseen liittyviä elämänkaariepidemiologisia prosesseja, joissa ADHD:n diagnoosiriski kasvoi pojilla lähes kolminkertaiseksi ja tytöillä 3,5-kertaiseksi, jos alhaisen syntymäpainon lasten äiti oli tupakoinut raskauden aikana On hyvin mahdollista, että yhteys selittyy osittain raskaudenaikaisella terveyskäyttäytymisellä ja terveyskäyttäytymiseen vaikuttaminen voi olla yksi mahdollisuus ennaltaehkäistä ADHD:n kehittymistä. Tutkimuksen valossa ADHD:n ennaltaehkäisy olisi hyödyllisintä ajoittaa syntymää tai kouluikää edeltäneeseen aikaan, ennen kuin ADHD:stä johtuvat varsinaiset ongelmat alkavat kasaantua.

Aim. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is defined as a neuropsychiatric disorder in medicine. In the field of sociology on the other hand the diagnosis is questioned through medicalization critique and seen as medicalization of human behaviour. Still, the everyday life of families that are effected by ADHD is not defined by such theoretical models or simplifications. The aim of this study was to describe, analyze and interpret the narratives of everyday life of diagnosed children and the mothers to find out, what explanatory models they cling to in their stories, how they describe meaningful experiences and what deeper meanings are hidden in the stories told. This study describes the everyday life in families with ADHD, and the struggles and strengths they experience, as narrated by themselves. This helps increase the knowledge of teachers of how to support and undrestand their students and their needs better, by not only looking at the indivual, but also understanding the meanig of the context of the whole family for the well-being of the child. Methodology. The study was carried out as a narrative case-study. Three families (child and mother) were interviewed, where the children, ages 6, 10 and 16, had been diagnosed with or were suspected of having ADHD. The interviews were conducted separately for each individual. Also medical certificates and documents from the school were used to complement the interviews and for background information. The material was analyzed by utilizing the actant model, where actants (action and deep meanings) were localized in the stories of the individuals and the families. Results and conclusions. The study found, that the families strongly depended on medical explanations in explaining etiology, struggles and symptoms and in attaining support from the school. Everyday life was described as tough, filled with worry, but still loving and wonderful. The results depict how demanding life can be in a family where the child has been diagnosed with ADHD, and the great need for the family to be heard. Symptoms, conflicts and worry for the child are a weight to the family and a risk for it’s well-being. Therefore knowledge of the multifaceted phenomenon and the understanding of teachers is a major factor in giving students appropriate support.

This study aimed to explore the self-protective strategies of six parents with ADHD and the sensitivity they displayed in dyadic interaction with their under 3-years-old children. The parents were interviewed using the Adult Attachment Interview. Parental sensitivity was assessed using the CARE-Index. The study showed a variation of the parents' self-protective strategies and sensitivity. The more complex the parent's self-protective strategy was, the less sensitive was the interaction. Some parents' need for self-protection compromised their ability to protect their child and decreased their sensitivity. All parents displayed indications of unresolved traumas, which also impaired their sensitivity to the signals of their child and ability to engage in mutual regulation of arousal and emotion with their child. Attachment-oriented family psychological assessment, including assessments of the self-protective strategies of each family member would make possible to design a treatment adapted to the unique family needs, also in order to alleviate early risk.

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a pervasive neurodevelopmental disorder of executive functions, which affects the social, occupational, educational, and personal life of the individuals concerned. The main characteristics of this disorder are age inappropriate inattention, impulsivity and hyperactivity. The research on adult ADHD is still scarce, especially concerning the neural networks of attention. Childhood ADHD has been associated with impairment in two of the attentional network subsystems alerting and executive control, leaving the third subsystem, orienting of attention, intact. Research on adult ADHD and the subsystems of attentional network is contradicting. The aim of this study was to investigate neural activation of these attentional networks during highly demanding attentional tasks in adults with ADHD. The first hypothesis was that the ADHD group have decreased activity in the frontoparietal network during orienting of attention in contrast to the control group. The second hypothesis was that the ADHD group have decreased activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate gyrus, and precuneus during divided attention in contrast to the control group. Both the ADHD group and the control group included 16 participants, aged 25 – 56 across all participants, whose brain activation was measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging during the attentional tasks. The tasks included divided and selective attention. Both conditions included task-irrelevant novel distractors. The results supported both hypotheses. The ADHD group had decreased brain activity in the frontoparietal network during top-down controlled and bottom-up triggered attention. Decreased activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate gyrus and precuneus was observed during divided attention in the ADHD group. Furthermore, the default-mode network was hyperactivated in the ADHD group. Activation of this network has been related to increasing task demands and failure of maintaining an alert state. Thus, adult ADHD seems to associate with abnormally functioning attention networks. Moreover, the results indicated that in addition to dysfunctional alerting and executive control, adults with ADHD have also impaired orienting of attention. These dysfunctional attentional networks may have a connection with the inattentive symptoms of adult ADHD.