ABSTRACT
This chapter is a sincere attempt to present an unbiased discussion of what is, to many care-providers, an emotionally charged topic: drug treatment of hyperactive behavior in children. There is a voluminous literature on hyperactivity and its management, only a small portion of which is presented here. It is useful, therefore, to note several books that are worthy of special comment as sources of additional information. One is Hyperactivity: Current Issues, Research and Theory by Dorothea and Sheila Ross, which is without peer as an extensive review of the scientific literature. The term hyperactivity is somewhat confusing because it is used both as a diagnostic construct and as a behavioral characteristic. As a behavioral characteristic, hyperactivity refers to overactivity and motor restlessness. As a diagnostic construct, however, hyperactivity is a particular childhood disorder that is defined in a specific way and diagnosed according to a specific set of criteria.
