PP-041 Comparison of two approaches of psychological therapy for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

AimTo evaluate the effectiveness of the method of group psychological therapy developed by the authors for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).Material and MethodThe study involved 45 children aged 5–7 years with ADHD, divided into two groups. In the first group, 24 children received therapeutic intervention in the form of traditional individual psychological therapy. In the second group, 21 children received therapeutic intervention in the form of a combination of individual and group psychological therapy: starting with individual therapy and continuing with group psychological therapy. The psychological therapy used by us included a combination of different approaches: cognitive neuropsychological correction, cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy (CBT), relaxation techniques, and work with parents. In individual sessions, the main focus was on cognitive neuropsychological correction methods, but CBT was also used, while only CBT was used in group sessions. To assess the effectiveness of therapy, all participants were evaluated before and after the course of treatment using: A. Luria’s neuropsychological testing method, Rene Zhi’s method of interpersonal relations, the Dembo-Rubinstein self-assessment scale.ResultsIn all cases, positive dynamics in ADHD manifestations were noted. According to the Luria method, the dynamics (changes) reached 1 point in the first group and 1,4 point in the second group (p=0,0029). According to the Rene-Zhi method, dynamics were achieved 15% in the first group and 21% in the second group (p=0,016). According to the Dembo-Rubinstein self-assessment scale, dynamics reached 25% in the first group and 34% in the second group (P=0,009). According to our observations, children in the second group showed the most significant improvement in overall performance, voluntary attention, self-regulation and control functions, communicative skills, and behavior in general.ConclusionsGreater effectiveness was demonstrated with the combined approach to psychological therapy for ADHD, where the individual format of sessions using neuropsychological and psychotherapeutic correction methods is followed by group psychotherapeutic sessions.