ABSTRACT
Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties (EBD) is the term commonly used by British educators to describe a wide range of individual, social and personal difficulties which manifest themselves in behaviour which is disruptive to the individual’s social and educational development, as well as, in some cases, being disruptive to the teaching and learning processes for others. As we noted in Chapter 1, current estimates place the population of children believed to experience EBD at between 10% and 20% of all school age children (Young Minds, 1999). EBD does not describe a single ‘condition’, but is rather an umbrella term for a wide range of difficulties. AD/HD is one such difficulty that can be seen as a sub-category of EBD. Having said this, current evidence suggests that AD/HD is present in high proportions among populations that might qualify for the label of EBD. A recent study found that 70% of students attending an EBD special school qualified for the diagnosis (Place et al., 2000), other studies of school-age children and young people have found that AD/HD co-occurs with other clinically defined disruptive behaviour disorders, such as Conduct Disorder and Oppositonal Defiance Disorder (Pliszka et al., 1999) in between, approximately 50-60% of cases, with some studies finding rates as high as 80% (ibid). One British study found that 100% of children with Conduct Disorder also qualified for the AD/HD diagnosis (McArdle
et al., 1995) (see section below on AD/HD and co-occurring conditions). Other features of AD/HD indicate that it is: • a life-long condition for between 50% and 70% of people diagnosed with it
• believed to have a biological basis, in that it is caused in part by dysfunctions in the brain’s neurotransmission system which impair the operations of the frontal lobes that are the seat of powers of impulse control and self-regulation
• often treated with stimulant medication
• associated with situational problems that might arise from the stress and strain of trying to cope with a child with genuine AD/HD.
