Clinical Assessment of Child and Adolescent Personality and ...

412CHAPTER 17 Assessment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivityfor a given child and which ones should,therefore, be a focus of intervention. Also,different causal factors may be involvedin the various subgroups of children withconduct problems. Understanding the differentpathways through which childrenand adolescents develop serious conductproblems can be critical for designingassessments and interpreting the informationprovided by the evaluation.Chapter Summary1. Externalizing behaviors are the mostcommon reason for referral to childmental health clinics.2. Based on research on ADHD suggeststhat:(a) Assessments should include a multiinformantand multi-source assessmentof the core ADHD behaviors:inattention-disorganization andimpulsivity-hyperactivity; assessmentof these core features must be placedwithin a developmental perspective.(b) Assessments should screen for thepresence of the most common cooccurringproblems that may accompanyADHD: conduct problems/aggression, emotional disturbance,low self-esteem, problematic socialrelationships, learning difficulties,and family conflict.(c) Assessments should rule out alternativecauses for the core symptoms:medical/ neurological disorders,mental handicaps, learning disorders,and adjustment reactions toenvironmental stressors.(d) Because ADHD often has a majorimpact on a child’s or adolescent’sschool functioning, the assessmentshould be conducted in collaborationwith school personnel and witha knowledge of local educationalstatutes relevant to services for studentswith ADHD.3. Based on research on severe conductproblems in children and adolescents:(a) Assessments should provide a multisourceand multi-method assessmentof conduct problems includingdetermining the types and severityof conduct problems and the age atwhich they began.(b) Assessments should screen for themost common co-occurring problemsthat often accompany conductproblems: ADHD, emotionaldisturbance, substance abuse, andlearning disabilities.(c) Assessments should assess knowncorrelates to conduct problems thatcould play a role in causing or maintainingthe problem behavior, andtherefore, should be a major focusof intervention: family functioning,cognitive deficits, social ecology,peer relations, and associations witha deviant peer group.(d) The age at which the serious conductproblems began and the presenceof callous-unemotional traitsshould be assessed because of theirimportance in designating uniquepathways to the development ofconduct problems.