Knowledge of performance feedback among boys with ADHD.
Give kids with ADHD moment-to-moment form cues, not end-of-game scores, to clean up motor skills faster.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Researchers worked with 24 boys with ADHD, . Half got special feedback while learning an underhand bean-bag toss. The feedback told them exactly how to move their arm, not just the score.
The other half only heard their point total after each throw. Kids took 40 tosses a day for three days. The team filmed every throw and graded form and accuracy.
What they found
Boys who heard the arm-movement tips showed smoother, more correct throws. Their form scores jumped a large share.
Both groups improved their cornhole score the same amount. Knowing how to move helped style, but not the final points.
How this fits with other research
Green et al. (2020) saw autistic adults stay wobbly even after learning a similar motor game. The new study shows kids with ADHD can fix form if you give the right cues, hinting ADHD may respond better to live coaching than ASD.
Mascheretti et al. (2018) found ADHD students know they struggle with posture, yet still slump. Our paper shows that telling them how to fix the slump in real time actually changes the movement.
Huguenin (2000) used long computer drills to widen attention in severe ID. We used short, human-given tips to sharpen a motor skill in ADHD. Both prove extended, specific feedback works, but the dose and coach can change.
Why it matters
Next time you run a gym or recess program, talk while they move. Say, "Elbow up, release at eye level," right as the child throws. Skip the lecture about the scoreboard. Three quick tips beat one long recap, and the skill sticks even if the points don’t jump yet.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Children with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often experience delays in acquiring competence completing fundamental motor skills. The effects of augmented prescriptive knowledge of performance feedback (PKP) have not been explored as a possible component solution. AIMS: The purpose of this study was to test the motor learning effects of KP among boys with ADHD. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: Thirty-one boys with ADHD, randomly selected into either a treatment or a control group, completed a series of cornhole games. It was hypothesized that PKP feedback administered to treatment group participants would increase motor learning. Dependent variables included cornhole scores and quality of performance measures. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Both groups improved in cornhole scores and improvement was not dependent upon KP. Treatment group participants performed significantly better in quality of performance of the underhand toss compared to the control group. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: PKP feedback improves motor skill performance learning among children with ADHD above knowledge of results feedback only. Recreational program directors should consider using KP feedback when teaching motor skills to boys with ADHD.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2018 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2017.12.003