Body movements of boys with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) during computer video game play

The type and severity of body movements exhibited by 79 (unmedicated) boys clinically diagnosed with ADHD (30 Predominantly Inattentive Type and 49 Combined Type), and 67 non-ADHD boys were recorded while playing Crash Bandicoot I, a Sony Playstation platform computer video game. In Crash Bandicoot, participants control the movements of a small animated figure (CB) through a hazardous jungle environment. Two tasks totaling 12 trials were administered, each of which incorporated with and without Distractor conditions. For those trials with the Distractor, a segment of the television show “The Simpsons” was simultaneously played on a television screen adjacent to the computer game monitor and at an equal volume. Contrary to theory and expectations an analysis of the data did not reveal any statistically significant differences in the frequency, type and severity of body movements between the ADHD and non-ADHD boys, or between the ADHD subtypes during computer video game play. These findings have important implications for assessment and teaching processes in both classroom and therapeutic contexts. Introduction Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) (American Psychiatric Association, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition Text Revision, DSM-IV TR, 2000) is the current diagnostic label for one of the most prevalent neurobiological/developmental disorders of childhood. ADHD is recognised to be comprised of difficulties with sustained attention, distractibility, impulse control, and hyperactivity (Barkley, 1997; Houghton et al., 1999; Schachar et al., 2000). Although 10_DiZ 10/10/2001 1:55 pm Page 607 (Black plate)