Читать книгу Introduction to Abnormal Child and Adolescent Psychology - Robert Weis - Страница 134

Figure 3.4 shows the results of meta-analyses examining the effects of neurofeedback, behavior therapy, and medication on children with ADHD. These meta-analyses combine the results of hundreds of studies involving thousands of children with this disorder. Consequently, the results can be used to make decisions regarding which form of treatment is most likely to help youths with ADHD (Cortese et al., 2017; Fabiano et al., 2010; Faraone & Buitelaar, 2010).

Description

Figure 3.4 ■ Meta-Analysis for the Treatment of ADHD in Children

Note: Meta-analysis is used to combine the results of many studies into a single effect size. This meta-analysis shows the effects of various treatments for ADHD compared to placebo. Whereas neurofeedback has a small effect on children’s symptoms, behavior therapy and medication have medium to large effects.

The bars in Figure 3.4 show the average weighted effect size for each form of treatment compared to placebo. Overall, neurofeedback has a small (and nonsignificant) effect on ADHD symptoms, behavior therapy has a medium effect, and medication has a large effect. Consequently, evidence-based practice indicates that clinicians should use behavior therapy and/or medication to treat children with ADHD, because these treatments are most likely to help (Evans et al., 2019).

Review

 Meta-analysis is a statistical technique that researchers use to combine the results of many studies into a single, numerical result.

 Meta-analysis yields an effect size (ES) that tells us how much of an effect the treatment had on children’s outcomes. It often reflects the number of standard deviations the treatment and control groups are apart at the end of the study.

 As a general rule, effect sizes of .2 or less are small, .5 are medium, and .8 or greater are large.