Childhood Trauma and Students Identified as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder -- A Qualitative Study through a Redacted Retrospective Record Review of Childhood Trauma and Special Education in Connecticut Public, Suburban, High Schools

Trauma can have deep impacts on children and the development of their frontal lobe. It is within the frontal lobe that executive functioning skills such as time management, work completion, and organization of materials are housed (De Bellis & Zisk, 2014; Kavanaugh et al., 2016). Symptoms outlined as executive functions are those that are also signifiers of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with deficits in cognitive functions such as weaknesses in following directions, organizing materials, regulation of emotions and patience (Miller, 2018; Su et al., 2019). While research has been done regarding childhood trauma as well as ADHD, the literature was void of known studies that explore evidence of trauma in the educational records of children identified with the academic diagnosis of ADHD. The proposed research looked at characteristics of childhood trauma (neglect, physical or mental abuse, divorce and death) and an academic diagnosis of OHI/ADD/ADHD in High School Students through a retrospective record review of Special Education records (2017-2018 Individualized Education Plans, Cognitive Assessments and Developmental Histories and Updates) through the theoretical framework of cognitive trauma theory, developmental trauma theory and executive function theory of ADHD, conclusions were drawn about the impact of the trauma and analyze how the IEP was written to support the student's need (Black et al., 2021; Goldstein & Naglieri, 2014). [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]