Cluttering and Working Memory in Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder.

Background

This study aims to explore cluttering and working memory in children and adolescents diagnosed with different subtypes of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and to compare them with typically developing (TD) children and adolescents.

Methods

The sample included 200 ADHD participants and a control group of 49 TD participants. All participants completed the Working Memory Scale and Predictive Cluttering Inventory-revised ). Data were analyzed using SPSS, and Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis tests were performed to assess differences between the groups. A significance level of P < .05 was used for all analyses.

Results

Significant differences were observed in the Working Memory, Visual Memory, and Verbal Memory scores across the Typically Developed ADHD-Inattentive type and ADHD-Combined type groups (P < .001). Additionally, there were significant differences in the PCI-TR scores, including motor speech, language planning, attention, motor planning, and total scores, between the 3 groups. The findings indicated significant differences between the groups across all variables (p < .001).

Conclusion

The study concluded that cluttering is present in both the ADHD Inattentive and Combined types. It is recommended that children diagnosed with ADHD undergo more comprehensive assessments of their language and speech capabilities.