AUTHOR=Paananen Mika , Husberg Henrik , Katajamäki Heli , Aro Tuija 

TITLE=School-based group intervention in attention and executive functions: Intervention response and moderators

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.975856

DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2022.975856

ISSN=1664-1078

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Objective</title><p>This study investigated the effects of a school-based skill-training intervention in attention control and executive functions for pupils with hyperactivity-impulsivity (H-I) and cognitive control (CC) deficits. The main aim was to examine whether the intervention differently influenced H-I and CC, and whether cognitive abilities or conduct problems moderated response to the intervention.</p></sec><sec><title>Method</title><p>Elementary school pupils from 41 schools participated the study and were divided into an intervention group (<italic>n</italic> = 71) and a waitlist control group (<italic>n</italic> = 77). Intervention outcomes were assessed with an inventory assessing executive function difficulties (including H-I and CC) completed by classroom teachers.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>Significant intervention effects and positive changes were detected in CC but not in H-I. Significant intervention effects were found mainly among pupils with low levels of conduct problems.</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusions</title><p>The results suggest that a skill-training intervention has specific positive effects on CC, but conduct problems may diminish response to intervention.</p></sec>