Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1996 May;35(5):571-8.
doi: 10.1097/00004583-199605000-00011.

Toward a new psychometric definition of social disability in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

Affiliations

Toward a new psychometric definition of social disability in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

R W Greene et al. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1996 May.

Abstract

Objective: To investigate a new mechanism for identifying social disability in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), employing psychometric methodology used in defining learning disabilities.

Method: Two groups of index children were examined: 140 children with ADHD (referred from both psychiatric and pediatric sources) and 120 non-ADHD comparison children. Subjects were defined as socially disabled if they had a value greater than 1.65 on a standardized discrepancy score between observed and expected scores on a measure of social functioning (with expected scores derived as a function of the child's estimated Full Scale IQ). Children identified as socially disabled were compared with non-socially disabled probands on psychopathology, familiality, cognitive functioning, school history, and treatment history.

Results: Using this psychometric approach, 22% of the ADHD probands qualified as socially disabled, whereas none of the comparison probands qualified (p < or = .001). Socially disabled ADHD probands were significantly more impaired than were non-socially disabled ADHD probands in global and specific measures of social functioning and patterns of psychiatric comorbidity.

Conclusions: The psychometrically defined construct of social disability may identify children with ADHD who are at very high risk for severe social dysfunction and whose course and prognosis may vary from those of other children with ADHD. This subgroup of children with ADHD may be at heightened risk for poor outcome, and their identification may facilitate the development of clinical interventions aimed at ameliorating their specific difficulties.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

  • Is ADHD social disability really comorbidity?
    Stein MA, Szumowski E, Blondis TA, Roizen N. Stein MA, et al. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1996 Dec;35(12):1570-1. doi: 10.1097/00004583-199612000-00003. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1996. PMID: 8973059 No abstract available.