RESUMO
INTRODUCTION: The present study examines bullying and its psychological consequences in school age children with and without attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). METHOD: The sample consisted of 34 children with ADHD and 36 children without ADHD. Continuity of bullying and victimization and their relationship with psychological problems and quality of life (QoL) were examined at two time points (T1 and T2) with one-year interval. RESULTS: Children with ADHD experienced significantly more bullying and victimization than controls at both times. There was a marginally significant positive relationship between victimization scores at T1 and internalizing problems at T2 for the total sample. For both groups separately, victimization scores at T2 was significantly related with QoL and internalizing problems at T2. DISCUSSION: School-age children with ADHD are at risk for bullying and victimization and their short-term negative effects. Timely interventions should be used to overcome the possible negative effects of peer victimization.
Assuntos
Transtorno do Deficit de Atenção com Hiperatividade , Bullying , Vítimas de Crime , Humanos , Criança , Transtorno do Deficit de Atenção com Hiperatividade/epidemiologia , Transtorno do Deficit de Atenção com Hiperatividade/psicologia , Qualidade de Vida , Seguimentos , Bullying/psicologia , Grupo Associado , Vítimas de Crime/psicologiaRESUMO
The present study aims to investigate peer victimization and its relationship with comorbid psychiatric diagnoses and quality of life (QoL) among children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Study sample consisted of 66 children with ADHD (mean age = 8.6 ± 1.1 years) and age- and gender-matched 66 controls (mean age = 8.5 ± 1.3 years). In self-reports, the ADHD group reported significantly higher rates of victimization and bullying than the non-ADHD group. Verbal and physical forms of victimization and bullying were the most prevalent forms in both groups; however, exclusion from peer groups, which is named as relational bullying, was the most significantly differing type between two groups. QoL parameters did not significantly differ between the children involved in bullying and those not involved, except for the lower physical QoL in victimized children in the control group. In conclusion, peer victimization was significantly more prevalent in the ADHD group than the non-ADHD group. Preventive measures are needed for peer victimization, especially for children with ADHD.