不同性別注意力缺陷過動症與普通學童之注意力表現差異探究

Gender Differences in the Attentional Performance of ADHD and Normal Students

本研究旨在比較不同性別注意力缺陷過動症（ADHD）與普通學童於注意力表現之差異，以探究性別因素在不同群體學生注意力功能所扮演的角色。研究者將258 位國小學童依男性ADHD 學生（90 位，平均年齡8.4 歲）、女性ADHD 學生（39 位，平均年齡8.5 歲）、男性普通學生（90 位，平均年齡8.4 歲）與女性普通學生（39 位，平均年齡8.5 歲）區分成四組受試者，所有學童均接受多向度的注意力量表（國小兒童注意力量表）測試，除探究學童整體注意力表現外，亦進一步分析集中性、持續性、選擇性、交替性與分配性等注意力向度之表現。研究結果顯示，在整體注意力表現上，不論男性或女性ADHD 學生的整體注意力表現均較普通學生差，且達顯著差異。在性別因素的探究方面，性別因素對ADHD 學生不同向度的注意力表現產生程度不一之影響，但不同性別普通學生的注意力表現並未呈現此差異性。不同性別ADHD 學生在注意力缺陷的向度數目（量）與注意力缺陷的嚴重程度（質）上，都存在差異。在量的差異方面，伴隨三種注意力向度缺陷（持續性、交替性與分配性注意力）的男性ADHD 學生，比伴隨兩種注意力向度缺陷（持續性與分配性注意力）的女性ADHD 學生呈現更多元的注意力缺陷特徵；在質的差異方面，雖然男、女ADHD 學生均呈現持續性與分配性注意力缺陷，但女性ADHD 學生的持續性注意力缺陷程度比男性ADHD 學生嚴重，而男性ADHD 學生的分配性注意力缺陷則較女性ADHD 學生嚴重。

Purpose: This study investigated gender differences in comparing the attention performance of students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with that of normal students to determine the role that gender plays in student attentional functioning among different student groups. Methods: A sample comprising 258 students was divided into 4 groups: (a) 90 male ADHD students (average age 8.4 years); (b) 39 female ADHD students (average age 8.5 years); (c) 90 normal male students (average age 8.4 years); and (d) 39 normal female students (average age 8.5 years). All of the participants were asked to take a multidimension attentional test, the Attention Scale for Elementary School Children, which is used to assess not only the general attentional functioning of children but also their performance in 5 dimensions of attention: focused, sustained, selected, alternated, and divided. Findings: The results indicated that both male and female ADHD students exhibit lower general attentional performance than normal students do. In addition, our results showed that gender differences existed in various dimensions of attention among the ADHD students but not among the normal students. The number of dimensions (quantity) and severity (quality) of attention deficit suffered by the ADHD students differed between genders. Quantitatively, the male ADHD students with attention deficit in 3 dimensions (sustained, alternated, and divided attention) exhibited characteristics of attention deficit that were more diverse than those of the female students with attention deficit in 2 dimensions (sustained and alternated attention). Qualitatively, despite both genders of the ADHD students suffering attention deficit in sustained and divided dimensions, the female students were more deficient in sustained attention than the male students,and the male students were more deficient in divided attention than the female students.Conclusion/Suggestions: Although the statistical analysis results of the multidimensional attention test used in this study showed no gender differences in various dimensions of attentional performance among the normal students, we confirm that the gender factor influenced the attentional performance of the ADHD students.