Physical Activity Experiences of Boys with and Without ADHD

Abstract

Physical activity experiences of 12 age-matched boys with and without attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were explored by converging information from Test of Gross Motor Development-2 assessments and semistructured interviews. The knowledge-based approach and the inhibitory model of executive functions, a combined theoretical lens, enabled the description of similarities and differences in experiences that emerged during interviews. Skill assessments indicated boys with ADHD were not as proficient movers as their peers without ADHD. Thematic analysis revealed that boys with ADHD reported playing with friends, paid little attention to detail, possessed superficial knowledge about movement skills, and expressed many negative feelings about physical activity. Task-specific interventions and a wider range of mixed methods research are recommended for future research studies in ADHD.

Youth Sport Experiences of Individuals With Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

“…This finding differs somewhat from other research showing that children with ADHD have poor movement-skill proficiency (Harvey et al, 2009;Harvey et al, 2012;Harvey et al, 2014). This discrepancy may be explained by the fact we sampled participants with at least 3 years of experience in sport.…”

“…Males were selected because ADHD is more prevalent among males than females (American Psychiatric Association, 2013;Rucklidge, 2010). We selected young adults because children may be poor interpreters and reporters of their symptoms of ADHD (Harvey et al, 2009), and a retrospective approach has successfully been used in a previous study with young adults with ADHD (Shattell et al, 2008). Furthermore, IPA methodologists have argued adults can contextualize and describe their experiences with a level of detail and complexity that cannot be matched by children's reports (Smith & Dunworth, 2003;Smith & Osborn, 2003).…”

“…This may detract from individuals' experiences in sport and other physical activity contexts (Harvey & Reid, 1997;Pitcher, Piek, & Hay, 2003) and result in withdrawal from participation (Bouffard, Watkinson, Thompson, Causgrove Dunn, & Romanow, 1996). As a case in point, Harvey et al (2009) found that boys with ADHD (age 9-12 years) lagged behind their peers without ADHD in terms of fundamental movement-skill proficiency and made twice as many statements indicating negative feelings about physical activity attributed to concerns about being "singled out" because of their poor skill proficiency. They also reported spending less time engaged in daily physical activity and organized sports than their peers without ADHD.…”

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and adverse health outcomes

“…Initial studies suggest that patients with ADHD eat more impulsively (Dempsey, Dyehouse, & Schafer, 2011), consume foods with less nutrient density and more total fat than non-ADHD individuals (Howard et al, 2011), and receive less exercise than their peers (Barkley, 2002; Harvey et al, 2009; Kim, Mutyala, Agiovlasitis, & Fernhall, 2011), although it is unclear whether this is due to lack of energy, lack of persistence, motor clumsiness, or other factors. Children with ADHD are rated not only as more hyperactive but also as more sluggish and underactive (McBurnett, Pfiffner, & Frick, 2001); hyperactivity and sluggishness are positively correlated.…”

Beyond Pharmacotherapy: Understanding the Links between Obesity and Chronic Mental Illness

“…95 Work has also found that relative to peers, children with ADHD have low gross motor performance, poor physical fitness, and delayed motor development 96 in addition to more negative feelings about physical activity. 97 Taken as a whole, these various results suggest that the link between ADHD and obesity is likely to be driven by both overeating and decreased physical activity, similar to obesity overall.…”