Caregiver Perceptions of the Impact of Psychoeducational Reports on Children with Learning Disabilities and ADHD
Abstract
The present study aimed to investigate caregiver perceptions of the role of psychoeducational reports in facilitating positive educational and psychosocial outcomes for children identified with learning disabilities (LD) or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Participants were twenty parents of children who previously received private psychoeducational assessments from a university-based teaching clinic in Southwestern Ontario. Data on children’s educational experiences and parents' concerns for their children’s functioning were collected through an online mixed-methods questionnaire. Findings suggested that psychoeducational reports facilitated a widespread increase in educational services and significantly addressed parent worries about children’s futures and autonomous, academic, and emotional functioning. However, the findings also revealed that some parents perceived their children’s educational services as inadequate for promoting successful outcomes. Taken together, the findings point to a need for further outcome data and enhancing collaboration between parents, clinicians, and educators to maximize the benefits that psychoeducational reports can have for children with LD and ADHD.