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EPA-0936 - Stimulants Improve Theory of Mind in Children with Attention Deficit/Hyperactive Disorder

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 April 2020

H. Maoz ,
L. Tzviban ,
G. Hila ,
S. Simone ,
Y. Levkowitz  and
B. Yuval
H. Maoz
Affiliation:
The Emotion-Cognition Research Center, Shalvata Mental Health Center, Hod Hasharon, Israel
L. Tzviban
Affiliation:
The Emotion-Cognition Research Center, Shalvata Mental Health Center, Hod Hasharon, Israel
G. Hila
Affiliation:
The Emotion-Cognition Research Center, Shalvata Mental Health Center, Hod Hasharon, Israel
S. Simone
Affiliation:
3Department of Psychology, University of Haifa Haifa Israel, Haifa, Israel
Y. Levkowitz
Affiliation:
The Emotion-Cognition Research Center, Shalvata Mental Health Care, Hod Hasharon, Israel
B. Yuval
Affiliation:
The Emotion-Cognition Research Center, Shalvata Mental Health Care, Hod Hasharon, Israel

Abstract

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Impairments in ‘theory of mind’ (ToM) were linked to social cognition and reciprocal relationships deficits in children with attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Twenty-four children with ADHD (13 with inattentive type and 11 with combined type, mean age 10.2 years) completed the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI), a self-reported empathy questionnaire. All children performed the ‘faux pas’ task and a computerized ToM task in two different sessions either with or without administration of methylphenidate (MPH). Administration of MPH was associated with an improvement in cognitive and affective ToM. Children with ADHD-combined type had significantly lower scores in total IRI and the fantasy scale compared to children with ADHD-inattentive type. We conclude that deficits in empathy and ToM may play an important role in the impairments in social cognition and peer relationship in children with ADHD, especially children a hyperactive component. Stimulants may improve ToM and empathic functions. Future studies including larger samples and additional cognitive tasks are warranted in order to generalize these results and to identify possible underlying mechanisms for improvement in ToM following the administration of MPH.

 BaselineWith MPHPost-hoc t testsP-value
Faux Pas Recognition Accuracy
Overall Score, mean (SD)8.87 (1.15)9.54 (0.83)n/a 
Control stories4.66 (0.48)4.79 (0.41)-1.000.32
Faux Pas stories4.21 (0.78)4.75 (0.53)-3.41<0.01
ToM computerized task
Overall Score, mean (SD)-0.0996 (0.57)0.1900 (0.52)-2.640.02
Cognitive Index-0.0079 (0.30)0.1279 (0.29)n/a 
Affective Index-0.0917 (0.29)0.0621 (0.25)n/a 

Type
FC04 - Free Communications Session 04: Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 29 , Issue S1: Abstracts of the 22nd European Congress of Psychiatry , 2014 , pp. 1
Copyright
Copyright © European Psychiatric Association 2014
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