The Role of Effortful Control in the Relation between Early Learning Stimulation and ADHD in Adolescence

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is highly heritable, but an adequate home environment may moderate its development. This study examined the early home learning environment and effortful control of 70 male adolescents (M age=13.5, SD=0.95) participating in a prospective high-risk longitudinal study. Results demonstrated that participants who were eventually diagnosed with ADHD in adolescence, had lower effortful control in early childhood and had less learning stimulation in their home environment. Furthermore, effortful control in childhood fully mediated the relation between learning stimulation in the early home environment and ADHD symptoms in adolescence. This suggests that the relation between learning stimulation and ADHD is indirect; early learning stimulation may promote effortful control abilities, which in turn, predict ADHD symptoms. These results may have clinical implication to the design of early intervention programs.