Mindfulness Training on Children with ADHD
Cristina Liviana Caldiroli, Genoveffa Malizia, Monica Pignarolo, Emmidio Fornaro, Andrea Mangiatordi, Fabrizia Mantovani, Alessandro Antonietti
Mindfulness can be defined as the ability to pay attention in a particular way: intentionally, in the present moment and in a non-judgmental way. These components together allow the person to relate in a mindful way to their own experiences, with the attitude of being present to them but in a non-critical and non-anxious way. Some studies have shown its efficacy even on children with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), a disorder of the child’s neurodevelopment characterized by a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity. The greatest problems are found in the child’s inability to regulate his behavior as the time goes by, the objectives to be achieved and the demands of the environment. Based on these observations, in the present project we investigated the effects produced by the program «Il Fiore Dentro», taken from the Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) of Kabat-Zinn, in children with ADHD. Ten children divided into two groups were selected, aged between 7 and 12, diagnosed with ADHD and given specific questionnaires. Subsequently, the groups took part in the 8 meetings foreseen by the «Il Fiore Dentro» program. At the end of the protocol the specific questionnaires for both groups were again dispensed. From the statistical analyzes carried out on the data collected, it was verified that there are no differences between the groups, despite the different settings in which the meetings of the two groups were held or by the trainer. Furthermore, significant differences were found between the pre-training situation (baseline) and the post-training situation. The analyzes were non-parametric given the low sample size.
Keywords
Mindfulness, ADHD, Self-regulation, Awareness, Relax.