The Effects of a Resilience-based Group Intervention for Youth with ADHD

ABSTRACT

Social deficits are highly impairing in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Interventions incorporating cognitive-behavioral and emotion regulation techniques may prove more effective than traditional social skills training (SST). This study examined the effectiveness of a manualized resilience-based group intervention and aimed to identify the mediators of social functioning improvement for children with ADHD. One hundred and fifty-nine children (ages 7–13 years) with an ADHD diagnosis participated in the Resilience Builder Program® (RBP) in a private clinical setting. Findings indicated significant pretest-posttest improvement across informants and multiple domains of functioning (e.g., behavior problems, hyperactivity/inattention, internalizing problems, social skills, resilience). Mediation analyses did not render significant results. RBP demonstrated effectiveness in numerous behavioral, emotional, and social domains in children with ADHD. Continued investigation of the mediators of social functioning improvement is needed to better understand RBP effectiveness for this population.

KEYWORDS:

• Resilience
• attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
• group intervention

Disclosure statement

Author Mary K. Alvord receives royalties from sales of her book: Resilience Builder Program for Children and Adolescents: Enhancing Social Competence and Self-Regulation (2011). Champaign, IL: Research Press. All other authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported in part by funding from the Group Foundation for Advancing Mental Health.