Summer Camp for Adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Naturalistic Context for Enhancing Social Competence

Many adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) experience difficulties in social competence (Ros & Graziano, 2018). Social difficulties in adolescents with ADHD have been tied to poor long-term outcomes and are predictive of global impairment (Morris et al., 2020). Summer camp programs have been overlooked as an opportunity for social growth and development. Evidence suggests that specialized summer camp with social skills training may have positive outcomes on social competence development in adolescents with ADHD (Pelham et al., 2010; Sibley et al., 2011, 2012). The current study investigated changes in social competence of adolescents with ADHD within a specialized social skills summer camp for children and adolescents with ADHD. The present study included a sample of 60 adolescents with ADHD between the ages of 12 and 16 years old and 15 camp counsellors. The Social-Emotional Assets and Resiliency Scales- Adolescent (SEARS-A) and Parent (SEARS-P) report were used to measure social competence. Overall, the present study demonstrated that adolescents with ADHD have significantly lower social competence when compared to a normative sample of adolescents. The study also confirmed that adolescents with ADHD improve their social competence after attending a specialized summer camp as demonstrated by higher social competence scores at the end of camp. Finally, the current study found similar scores between counsellor ratings of adolescent’s social competence and adolescent ratings of social competence. In conclusion, specialized summer camp programs may be an innovative, cost effective, and generalizable method to support social competence growth in adolescents with ADHD.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science (MSc)

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Education Graduate Program – Educational Psychology

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Werklund School of Education

Year dc:date.issued

2020

Author dc:creator

• Neprily, Kirsten

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Climie, Emma A.

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Makarenko, Erica
• Spring, Erin

• Adolescents
• Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
• Social Competence
• Camp
• Summer Camp
• Social Skills Training

Statement dc:rights

• University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.

Language dc:language.iso

eng

DOI

http://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/38100

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:ucalgary.scholaris.ca:1880/112413