Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) face a range of learning difficulties in the school environment, thus several strategies have been developed to manage the inappropriate in-seat behaviour and enhance children’s performance in school. One possible way is to enable appropriate restlessness using dynamic seating such as a therapy ball and an active seat.
To test the effectiveness of dynamic seating, we designed a study that examined children’s success of solving cognitive tasks while observing the intensity and adequacy of movement, electrodermal activity and facial temperature. Our experimental group consisted of 11 school-aged children with a combined type of ADHD as well as various comorbid learning disorders, and control group was composed of 12 school-aged children without disorders.
The children with ADHD achieved the best results when sitting in the active seat, where the most intense and appropriate movement was observed. The seat also provided comfortable sitting and squeezable padding, which both contributed to the popularity of the chair among the children with ADHD.
Research has suggested that for better cognitive performance in children with ADHD, it is crucial to provide a comfortable and pleasant workspace that enables them the right amount of restlessness. A longitudinal study in the school environment would show the actual effects of dynamic seating on the alleviation of learning difficulties.
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