The early assessment of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD) children has mainly focused on the behavioral, social, and
pre-academic impairments. This study examined whether 5 to 6-year-old
children at risk of ADHD are characterized by information-processing
deficits. By screening 1,317 children in Southern Limburg (the
Netherlands) with the Child Behavior Checklist, 363 were selected and
underwent a computerized examination. Eighteen months later, standardized
psychiatric information was obtained. Thirty-three ADHD children were
compared with 75 borderline ADHD children, 122 pathological
controls, and 133 healthy controls. ADHD and borderline ADHD
children were slower and more variable in their processing speed on all
tasks than children with no or other pathology. These differences were
most pronounced for the divided and focused attention tasks. Furthermore,
one measure of a state regulation deficit discriminated between groups.
With regard to accuracy, only the proportion of misses on a go–no-go
task was higher in the ADHD group than in the other groups. Evidence was
found that ADHD is better seen as a continuum rather than a discrete
category. Already at a young age, children at risk of ADHD show specific
information-processing deficits. Deficits in time perception and/or
energetic state control in children with ADHD may possibly account for
subnormal task performance. (JINS, 2005, 11,
173–183.)