Prevalence of attention problems and the efficacy of a short-term parent-teacher intervention for possible ADHD in a low SES community in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng

Downing, Vicky

Prevalence of attention problems and the efficacy of a short-term parent-teacher intervention for possible ADHD in a low SES community in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng

Thesis / Dissertation

2025

Publisher

University of Cape Town

Department

Department of Psychology

Faculty

Faculty of Humanities

Abstract

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), a neurodevelopmental disorder, impacts a large number of children. Treatment access barriers in South Africa, and long-term effectiveness of pharmacological interventions, particularly for socio-economically disadvantaged individuals, necessitate low-cost, evidence-based interventions. The aim of this dissertation, comprising two studies, was to determine the efficacy of a short-term, teacher-led, parent training intervention, which I designed based on available evidence and best practice recommendations, in alleviating attention problems in learners aged 8 to12 years from a disadvantaged school in Gauteng. Study One intended to identify the extent of undiagnosed attention problems in the same school, through various standardised and non-standardised measures. Parents, of children presenting with attention problems, were then invited to participate in a teacher-led parent psychosocial training intervention, the efficacy of which was investigated in Study Two. Both studies utilise a cross-sectional and quantitative design, with (informal /descriptive) qualitative observations for Study Two. For Study One, after screening for possible ADHD, I collected information on parent demographic details, risk factors for ADHD, and co-morbid difficulties. Study Two followed a pre-and post-intervention design, quantifying changes in parent-, and teacher reported attention-related problems in child participants from Study One. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics, with Study One using t-tests, and Fisher's Exact tests; Study Two used the Reliable Change Index (RCI; Jacobson & Traux, 1991), and within-group analyses, assessing the efficacy of the programme. Study One (N=30) results indicated that ± 73% of child participants were assessed to have possible ADHD; they tended to be older, descriptively, than child participants without attention-related problems, and male. Study Two (N=17) results indicate that the intervention showed moderate effect sizes for improvements in memory-related difficulties as assessed by parent and teacher participants with parents reporting (qualitative) positive changes in aspects not measured by the standardised assessment, and encouraging outcomes for a promising locally-applicable psychosocial intervention . Despite the noted limitations, both studies provide contextually-relevant insights into difficulties experienced by parents, children, and teachers regarding inequalities in access to quality healthcare, multilingualism, and educational provision for learners not only with attentional difficulties, but with special educational needs more generally.