Task-related motivation and academic achievement in children and adolescents with ADHD

Academic impairment in individuals with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is in part due to reduced motivation for academic tasks, which is likely to vary as a function of task characteristics. The current study employed a new questionnaire—the Child and Adolescent Motivational Profile (CHAMP)—to examine; (1) which task characteristic participants with ADHD perceive as most motivating relative to typically developing peers (TDP) and (2) whether these differences mediate academic functioning. 34 participants with ADHD and 435 TDP (8–16 years) completed the CHAMP. Academic achievement (grade point average) and self-reported positive/negative classroom experiences were recorded. No task characteristics were rated higher in terms of their motivational salience in the ADHD group than in the control sample. Marked/graded, Socially evaluated, Collaborative, Requiring focus and Cognitively challenging task characteristics were rated significantly lower by the ADHD group than controls. The lower rating of Socially evaluated was explained by comorbid ODD symptoms. Cognitively challenging was rated as particularly unmotivating by individuals with ADHD. ADHD was associated with a decreased GPA and a more negative classroom experience. The associations between ADHD and GPA/negative classroom experience were both partially mediated by scores on the Cognitively Challenging scale. For children and adolescents with ADHD tasks that are cognitively challenging were not particularly motivating. To increase task motivation, and improve academic performance of individuals with ADHD, it may be important to include rewarded task elements as they are appraised as particularly motivating by these individuals and this appraisal was similar to that of TDP.