School-based treatment for ADHD, professional support and teacher burnout

Abstract

Elementary school teacher’s use of school-based intervention as recommended by the clinical guidelines for treatment of ADHD was examined, and its relationship with teacher perceptions of professional support and symptoms of teacher burnout. An online self-report questionnaire was sent via email to all members of the Association of Teachers in Primary and Lower Secondary Schools, with 61 questions. Maslach Burnout Inventory measured three subscales of burnout; Emotional Exhaustion, Depersonalization and Personal Achievement. A total of 633 responses was collected (88%female, 10% male). Of all participants, 94% reported teaching at least one child this school-year with a preliminary or formal diagnosis of ADHD. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated that as teachers adhere to a greater number of methods according to clinical guidelines for ADHD in the classroom, they experienced more symptoms of Personal Achievement. As teachers reported being more satisfied with the support they received, they experienced fewer symptoms of Emotional Exhaustion. Generalization of the findings is limited but imply that application of evidence-based practices for teaching children with ADHD should be further investigated.