Childhood Behavior Problems and Academic Outcomes in Adolescence: Longitudinal Population-Based Study

Abstract

Across the full range of scores at a population level, each 1-point increase in inattention at age 7 years is associated with worse academic outcomes at age 16. The findings highlight long-term academic risk associated with ADHD, particularly inattentive symptoms. After adjusting for inattention and ADHD respectively, oppositional/defiant behaviors and DBDs are also independently associated with worse academic outcomes.

A longitudinal study of the association between inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity and children's academic attainment at age 11

“…For children meeting all nine inattention criteria the effect size was 0.9 for English and mathematics, on average. The linear relationship between the number of inattention criteria met and academic attainment echoed the findings of Sayal et al (2015), which used the DAWBA to assess behaviour at age 7 and followed the children up to the end of secondary school. The present study used a substantially larger sample and showed that this pattern of later risk of negative outcomes can be identified in children as young as five years and, as such, has potentially important implications for education.…”

“…The sample size of the six studies analysed by Duncan et al was not as large as the present study and the outcome measures were different between studies. Probing the association between behavior and academic outcomes, Sayal, Washbrook and Propper (2015) analysed a population-based sample of 11,640 students whose behavior was assessed by parents and teachers at the age of 7 using the Developmental and Wellbeing Assessment (DAWBA) and followed them up to the end of compulsory secondary education in England. The DAWBA provided scores for inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity on a continuum which allowed the authors to investigate academic outcome for the full range of behaviours from no symptoms through to severe.…”

“…These studies have focused on clinical populations. Other large-scale longitudinal school-based studies have investigated the impact of severe ADHD-type behaviour on the academic attainment of children who do not necessarily have a formal diagnosis of the disorder (Polderman et al, 2010;Washbrook et al, 2013;Sayal et al, 2015). The findings from the school-based studies highlight the level of risk of underachievement for children with undiagnosed severe behavioural problems and have important implications for educational policy and practice.…”

Impact of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder on School Performance: What are the Effects of Medication?

“…Another large longitudinal population based follow-up study from England showed that every one-point increase in inattention symptoms at age 7 was associated with incrementally worse academic outcomes at age 16 as measured by standardized achievement tests. In boys, ADHD was associated with more than double the likelihood of not achieving acceptable scores across the range of subjects tested [26]. The chronic educational underachievement associated with ADHD has been demonstrated to have long-term implications for children's future health, socioeconomic, and employment outcomes [9,11,[27][28][29][30].…”

Child–Adult Relationship Enhancement in Primary Care (PriCARE): A Randomized Trial of a Parent Training for Child Behavior Problems

“…[1][2][3] Children with behavioral problems enter kindergarten disadvantaged in language, motor, social, and school readiness skills and are at increased risk of poor longterm academic outcomes. 4,5 Behavioral problems are also associated with increased risk of substance abuse, anxiety disorders, ADHD, and suicide. 1,6 Furthermore, children with behavioral problems are at increased risk of harsh parenting and physical abuse.…”