Teacher Acceptability of Evidence-Based and Promising Treatments for Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

This study examined teachers’ acceptability of evidence-based and promising treatments for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Teachers (N = 156) from 11 elementary schools read a vignette describing a boy with symptoms typical of combined type ADHD. Using the Intervention Rating Profile-10, teachers rated the acceptability of three promising treatments (peer tutoring, self-reinforcement, and social skills) and three evidence-based treatments, both psychosocial (daily report card and time-out) and pharmacological (stimulant medication). Teacher factors, including teacher self-efficacy, were evaluated as predictors of treatment acceptability. The daily report card (DRC) received the highest mean acceptability rating among the treatments, and was rated significantly higher than 4 of 5 other treatments; the DRC was not rated significantly higher than the self-reinforcement strategy. Years of experience was predictive of acceptability in that more experienced teachers rated timeout as more acceptable than peer tutoring. Results replicate previous findings and uniquely indicate that promising treatments are considered as acceptable, and in some cases, more acceptable than evidence-based treatments for chil-