Students with an attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis are more vulnerable to student attendance problems and experience various comorbidities, including social and separation anxiety, depression, physical discomfort, and aggression. A study published in Frontiers in Psychology found that students with ADHD and comorbid symptoms were more likely to have school attendance problems than those with ADHD who had no additional symptoms.
This suggests it is not ADHD alone that causes school attendance problems. For parents and clinicians, this research encourages investigating other mental health factors when helping students with ADHD and school attendance problems.
The negative impact of school absenteeism on children is well-known, with both short-term academic and social consequences and long-term effects like economic struggles and unemployment. The term “school attendance problems” (SAPs) refers to all types of absence, authorized or unauthorized, and all levels of problem severity.
Several factors increase the risk of SAPs, including health-related issues, neuropsychiatric diagnoses like ADHD and autism spectrum disorder, low socioeconomic status, abuse, neglect, and mental health problems.
ADHD is characterized by inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity, affecting between 3.4-7.2% of children. It is more common in boys than in girls. Children with ADHD frequently experience comorbidities; they are more likely to be absent from school, have low academic achievement, and be victims of bullying. Furthermore, children with ADHD are likelier to leave school early and struggle to find a job in adulthood.
Sofia Niemai and team sought to investigate the relationship between ADHD and school absenteeism. Additionally, they intended to explore the related symptoms and the perceived reasons for absenteeism as reported by adolescents with ADHD compared to neurotypical peers.
The study involved 1,569 adolescents aged 11-18 years from various schools in Finland. School attendance problems were measured using the Inventory of School Attendance Problems (ISAP), which includes a symptom scale (ISAP S) and a function scale (ISAP F).
Statistical analysis revealed that adolescents with ADHD were more absent from school than neurotypical adolescents during the prior 12 weeks, with adolescents with ADHD demonstrating more symptoms of agoraphobia/panic and family and parental problems. In addition, students reported that separation anxiety, agoraphobia/panic, aggression, issues within the family, and parents were more often perceived as the reason for SAP.
The findings are congruent with previous studies that show a link between neurodevelopmental disorders such as ADHD and school absenteeism. The research also revealed that adolescents with may ADHD struggle with several negative symptoms compared to their neurotypical peers.
The research team acknowledged some limitations of the study. First, the sample size was large but not representative of Finland’s population; therefore, it was not representative. Second, students were asked to remember absences over 12 weeks, a relatively long time for adolescents and perhaps even more so for adolescents with ADHD. As a result, the collected data may be skewed. Finally, the measure of student perceived reasons for absences was only completed by 57% of the participants, limiting the sample size.
Despite these concerns, the study supports previous research that shows a link between ADHD and school absenteeism and reveals adolescents with ADHD report more symptoms related to agoraphobia/panic and problems with family and parents. The results demonstrate the need for specific preventive actions for adolescents with ADHD to address school absenteeism.
The study, “School attendance problems in adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder”, was authored by Sofia Niemai, Martin Lagerström, and Katarina Alanko.
