Citation

Milich R, Loney J. J. Pediatr. Psychol. 1979; 4(2): 93-112.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1979, Oxford University Press)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Reviews the literature, noting that hyperactive adolescents are at risk for a variety of academic, emotional, and societal difficulties, which apparently develop regardless of whether the child was successfully treated with medication. This is true despite the fact that in short-term studies stimulant medication repeatedly has been found to reduce hyperactive symptomatology. The authors believe that the reason for this seeming inconsistency is that neither the nature nor the degree of primary symptomatology (e.g., childhood hyperactivity and inattention) plays a role in predicting adolescent outcome. Thus, research that has concentrated on the effects of (drug) treatment on hyperactivity has little relevance for predicting or explaining adolescent outcome. Instead, those variables often considered as secondary or resultant symptomatology (e.g., aggressivity) have been found to have predictive utility. It is suggested that research effort might be more profitably spent investigating the role of such secondary variables.

Language: en