Information & Research
from Judy Wiener’s Lab
ADHD (Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder), LD (Learning Disabilities) and the 4th R (Relationships):
A Resource for Parents, Teachers, and Teens
About us
Educators claim that the core of the school curriculum is the 3 R’s - Reading, wRiting, and aRithmetic. When children are asked what they like about school they refer to the 4th R – Relationships. Research has shown that children and youth who have positive relationships with parents, peers, and teachers have better outcomes. That’s why, together with my research colleagues and students, I am investigating why many children and youth with ADHD and LD have challenges with the 4th R.
Some of the questions we are currently researching are:
- How do children and youth with ADHD understand their problem behaviours and disorder?
- Do adolescents with ADHD have low self-esteem and negative perceptions of their academic, social, and behavioural competence?
- Are children and youth with ADHD bullies or victims of bullying? How does being a bully or victim impact their self-perceptions and their mental health?
- Do children and youth with ADHD and LD have close, stable, high quality of friendships?
- Do children and youth with ADHD have difficulties with social perspective taking (understanding the perspective of the people they interact with and using this understanding to solve social problems) and do these difficulties impact their friendships and whether they are perpetrators or victims of peer bullying?
- What factors contribute to parenting stress in parents of children and youth with ADHD?
- Do adolescents with ADHD have more conflict with their parents than other adolescents? If so, what factors contribute to that conflict?
- What involvement do parents of children and adolescents with ADHD have with regard to the education of their children and how does that involvement impact academic outcomes?
- Will a mindfulness cognitive behaviour therapy treatment for youth with ADHD and their parents lead to a reduction in parent-teen conflict, parenting stress, and better behavioural and academic outcomes in youth?
On this website we:
- Provide readable summaries of the results of our studies
- List and provide links to scholarly papers in professional journals that describe this research in detail
- Advertise our current studies so that we can recruit participants who might help us learn more about the 4th R in children and youth with ADHD and LD
- Provide handouts for teachers on approaches to teaching all 4 Rs to children and youth with learning and social difficulties
- Provide links to resources for parents, teachers, children, and youth who want information about ADHD or LD or who are seeking treatment for their challenges