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Background: A stronger preference for immediate rewards has been reported in individuals with ADHD and other disorders. However, the consistency of the associations between this preference and psychiatric conditions as well as functional outcomes have been questioned. Research on its association with longitudinal outcomes is scarce. Methods: The current study used data on a choice delay task (CDT) from a school‐based cohort of Brazilian children with those at higher risk for psychiatric disorders over‐sampled (n = 1917). The sample included typically developing children (n = 1379), those with ADHD (n = 213), and other disorders. The frequency of the trials where children chose a larger later reward versus a smaller sooner reward was compared for those with ADHD and typically developing children. Cross‐sectionally and longitudinally, the study also evaluated whether children's preference for larger delayed rewards at baseline predicted the presence of psychiatric disorders and functional life outcomes (academic performance, alcohol use, early pregnancy, criminal conviction, BMI). Results: Children with ADHD and their typically developing peers performed similarly on the CDT. Their baseline task performance was not related to psychiatric conditions or life outcomes. Conclusions: The current results raise questions regarding the use of the CDT with diverse populations and whether a preference for larger delayed rewards is predictive of positive long‐term outcomes as widely assumed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Prominent theoretical accounts of attention‐deficit/hyperactivity‐disorder (ADHD) hypothesize that reinforcement learning deficits underlie symptoms of ADHD. The Dynamic Developmental Theory and the Dopamine Transfer Deficit hypothesis assume impairments in both the acquisition and extinction of behavior, especially when learning occurs under partial (non‐continuous) reinforcement, and subsequently the Partial Reinforcement Extinction Effect (PREE). Few studies have evaluated instrumental learning in ADHD and the results are inconsistent. The current study investigates instrumental learning under partial and continuous reinforcement schedules and subsequent behavioral persistence when reinforcement is withheld (extinction) in children with and without ADHD. Methods: Large well‐defined samples of children with ADHD (n = 93) and typically developing (TD) children (n = 73) completed a simple instrumental learning task. The children completed acquisition under continuous (100%) or partial (20%) reinforcement, followed by a 4‐min extinction phase. Two‐way (diagnosis by condition) ANOVAs evaluated responses needed to reach the learning criterion during acquisition, and target and total responses during extinction. Results: Children with ADHD required more trials to reach criterion compared to TD children under both continuous and partial reinforcement. After partial reinforcement, children with ADHD executed fewer target responses during extinction than TD children. Children with ADHD executed more responses than TD children during extinction, irrespective of learning condition. Conclusions: The findings demonstrate general difficulties in instrumental learning in ADHD, that is, slower learning irrespective of reinforcement schedule. They also show faster extinction following learning under partial reinforcement in those with ADHD, that is, a diminished PREE. Children with ADHD executed more responses during extinction. Results are theoretically important, with clinical implications for understanding and managing learning difficulties in those with ADHD, as they suggest poorer reinforcement learning and lower behavioral persistence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Female youth with oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and conduct disorder (CD) are an under studied and underserved population at high risk for poor adjustment in later life. Stadler et al. (2024) attempt to redress this situation for adolescent females with CD or ODD with an adapted version of the skills training program START NOW. They describe the results of an ambitious randomized control trial, comparing START NOW with standard care in youth welfare settings in Germany, Switzerland, and The Netherlands. The findings appear promising, but the paper is especially valuable for the spotlight it shines on the needs of this underserved population and those caring for them, together with the importance of undertaking such trials despite their challenges. This commentary seeks to encourage readers to engage with the START NOW trial. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The New Forest Parenting Programme (NFPP) is a parenting program developed for parents who have a child with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It is a manualized program that is delivered in a parent's home over 8 weeks, or in a group format, or through a self-help manual. Three randomized controlled trials have been carried out in the United Kingdom. The NFPP group has adapted the program according to feedback from parents and therapists, and for use with different populations, both within the United Kingdom and internationally. The first international trial took place in New York, United States. Trials in Denmark, Hong Kong, and Japan followed. More recently, a trial of the self-help manual has been carried out in mainland China. This paper will outline the adaptions that were needed in order to be able to deliver the program in different countries with their own expectations of parenting, culture, and language. Training had to be differently focused; manuals and handouts had to be revised, translated and back-translated; and supervision had to be delivered at a distance to maintain the fidelity of the program. The international group will outline their experience of running trials in their own countries with the NFPP in a face-to-face format (Denmark), a group format (Hong Kong and Japan), and a self-help format (mainland China). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The behavioral sensitivity of children with ADHD to punishment has received limited theoretical and experimental attention. This study evaluated the effects of punishment on the response allocation of children with ADHD and typically developing children. Method Two hundred and ten children, 145 diagnosed with ADHD, completed an operant task in which they chose between playing two simultaneously available games. Reward was arranged symmetrically across the games under concurrent variable interval schedules. Asymmetric punishment schedules were superimposed; responses on one game were punished four times as often as responses on the other. Results Both groups allocated more of their responses to the less frequently punished alternative. Response bias increased significantly in the ADHD group during later trials, resulting in missed reward trials and reduced earnings. Conclusions Punishment exerted greater control over the response allocation of children with ADHD with increased time on task. Children with ADHD appear more sensitive to the cumulative effects of punishment than typically developing children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International practice guidelines recommend medication and behavioral intervention as evidenced-based treatments for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD). Currently in Japan, the availability of non-pharmacological interventions for ADHD is limited. We report the results of a pilot and a proof-of-concept study for a new behavioral intervention for Japanese mothers of children with ADHD. The pilot study delivered a standard six-session behavioral intervention and two parent-support sessions. Participants approved the group format and requested additional support to change parenting practices and behavioral strategies targeting ADHD symptoms. For the proof-of-concept study, the intervention was revised to include five sessions of pre-intervention support followed by six sessions of the New Forest Parent Training Programme ( NFPP), an evidence-based intervention for ADHD. The revised intervention, NFPP-Japan, was associated with reductions in the mothers' reports of children's ADHD symptoms and aggression, more effective parenting practices, and reduced parenting stress. The pilot and proof-of-concept studies indicate that it is possible to successfully modify Western behavioral interventions for Japanese mothers and to justify a randomized controlled trial evaluation of the NFPP-Japan, which is currently underway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Altered sensitivity to positive reinforcement has been hypothesized to contribute to the symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In this study, we evaluated the ability of children with and without ADHD to adapt their behavior to changing reinforcer availability. Method: Of one hundred sixty-seven children, 97 diagnosed with ADHD completed a signal-detection task in which correct discriminations between two stimuli were associated with different frequencies of reinforcement. The response alternative associated with the higher rate of reinforcement switched twice during the task without warning. For a subset of participants, this was followed by trials for which no reinforcement was delivered, irrespective of performance. Results: Children in both groups developed an initial bias toward the more frequently reinforced response alternative. When the response alternative associated with the higher rate of reinforcement switched, the children's response allocation (bias) followed suit, but this effect was significantly smaller for children with ADHD. When reinforcement was discontinued, only children in the control group modified their response pattern. Conclusions: Children with ADHD adjust their behavioral responses to changing reinforcer availability less than typically developing children, when reinforcement is intermittent and the association between an action and its consequences is uncertain. This may explain the difficulty children with ADHD have adapting their behavior to new situations, with different reinforcement contingencies, in daily life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study compared the current intellectual and neuropsychological functioning of 55 children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD group) 4 years earlier with that of an age- and sex-matched control sample. The children in the ADHD group performed less well than the control group on measures of intellectual function, design fluency, spatial organization, and visual memory. Those children who continued to meet DSM-IV criteria for ADHD (persistent ADHD, n = 32) evidenced greater impairment than those showing some symptom remission ( ADHD in partial remission, n = 23). These data confirm the presence of neuropsychological deficits in late childhood/early adolescence among those previously diagnosed with ADHD. The data also suggest that greater cognitive impairment is a feature of persistent ADHD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We review strategies for developing animal models for examining and selecting compounds with potential therapeutic benefit in attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). ADHD is a behavioural disorder of unknown aetiology and pathophysiology. Current understanding suggests that genetic factors play an important role in the aetiology of ADHD. The involvement of dopaminergic and noradrenergic systems in the pathophysiology of ADHD is probable. We review the clinical features of ADHD including inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity and how these are operationalized for laboratory study. Measures of temporal discounting (but not premature responding) appear to predict known drug effects well (treatment validity). Open-field measures of overactivity commonly used do not have treatment validity in human populations. A number of animal models have been proposed that simulate the symptoms of ADHD. The most commonly used are the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) and the 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned (6-OHDA) animals. To date, however, the SHR lacks treatment validity, and the effects of drugs on symptoms of impulsivity and inattention have not been studied extensively in 6-OHDA-lesioned animals. At the present stage of development, there are no in vivo models of proven effectiveness for examining and selecting compounds with potential therapeutic benefit in ADHD. However, temporal discounting is an emerging theme in theories of ADHD, and there is good evidence of increased value of delayed reward following treatment with stimulant drugs. Therefore, operant behaviour paradigms that measure the effects of drugs in situations of delayed reinforcement, whether in normal rats or selected models, show promise for the future. LINKED ARTICLES This article is part of a themed issue on Translational Neuropharmacology. To view the other articles in this issue visit [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review considers the hypothesis that changes in dopamine signalling might account for altered sensitivity to positive reinforcement in children with ADHD. The existing evidence regarding dopamine cell activity in relation to positive reinforcement is reviewed. We focus on the anticipatory firing of dopamine cells brought about by a transfer of dopamine cell responses to cues that precede reinforcers. It is proposed that in children with ADHD there is diminished anticipatory dopamine cell firing, which we call the dopamine transfer deficit (DTD). The DTD theory leads to specific and testable predictions for human and animal research. The extent to which DTD explains symptoms of ADHD and effects of pharmacological interventions is discussed. We conclude by considering the neural changes underlying the etiology of DTD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study has two aims: (1) to examine associations between the emotional content of parent–child past event conversations and two aspects of children's self-concept—moral self and self-esteem; and (2) to examine the degree to which talk about past events is uniquely associated with self-concept when compared with talk about ongoing events and situations. Fifty-one five- and six-year-old New Zealand children and their parents discussed four emotional past events and two ongoing conflicts. Children's moral self, self-esteem and language ability were also assessed. When parents referred to a greater number of positive emotions and evaluations, regardless of conversation type, their children had higher self-esteem. Past event talk also uniquely predicted children's self-esteem: Parents who used more explanations during conversations regarding past negative emotions, and more explanations and confirmations of past positive emotions, had children with higher self-esteem. We discuss these results with respect to an autobiographical memory approach to self-concept development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Methods Results Conclusions Well Parent Japan (WPJ) is a new hybrid group parent training programme combining sessions to improve mothers' psychological well‐being with a culturally adapted version of the New Forest Parenting Programme (NFPP). This study investigates the effectiveness and cost‐effectiveness of WPJ against treatment as usual (TAU) within Japanese child mental health services.TRANSFORM was a pragmatic multi‐site randomised controlled trial (RCT) with two parallel arms. Altogether 124 mothers of 6–12‐year‐old children with DSM‐5 ADHD were randomised to WPJ (n = 65) or TAU (n = 59). Participants were assessed at baseline, post‐treatment and three‐month follow‐up. The primary outcome was parent‐domain stress following intervention. Secondary outcomes included maternal reports of child‐domain stress, parenting practices, parenting efficacy, mood, family strain, child behaviour and impairment. Objective measures of the parent–child relationship were collected at baseline and post‐treatment. Data analysis was intention to treat (ITT) with treatment effects quantified through analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) via multilevel modelling. An incremental cost‐effectiveness ratio (ICER) assessed WPJ's cost‐effectiveness.WPJ was superior to TAU in reducing parent‐domain stress post‐treatment (adjusted mean difference = 5.05, 95% CI 0.33 to 9.81, p = .036) and at follow‐up (adjusted mean difference 4.82, 95% CI 0.09 to 9.55, p = .046). Significant WPJ intervention effects were also observed for parenting practices, parenting efficacy and family strain. WPJ and TAU were not significantly different post‐intervention or at follow‐up for the other secondary outcomes. The incremental cost of WPJ was 34,202 JPY (315.81 USD). The probability that WPJ is cost‐effective is 74% at 10,000 JPY (USD 108.30) per one‐point improvement in parenting stress, 92% at 20,000 JPY (216.60 USD). The programme was delivered with high fidelity and excellent retention.WPJ can be delivered in routine clinical care at modest cost with positive effects on self‐reported well‐being of the mothers, parenting practices and family coping. WPJ is a promising addition to psychosocial interventions for ADHD in Japan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors respond to comments made by Jonathan Williams about their article on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Although Williams shared their thoughts about ADHD being highly heterogenous, the authors believed that there is much to be learned from examining the behavioral and clinical implications of simple, definable, neurophysiological changes in dopaminergic function. Their article is aimed at discussing the altered sensitivity to reinforcers that is observed in ADHD.