Distraction as a Function of Within-Task Stimulation for Hyperactive and Normal Children

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Abstract
Research indicates that increased distal and especially peripheral environmental stimulation does not distract the hyperactive child but may actually have a facilitative effect on performance. Increased within-task stimulation, however, has been found to be disruptive, but these studies have generally confounded increased stimulation with increased task complexity (by increasing the number of competing cues). The present study sought to assess task performance of hyperactive and normal children with and without within-task color, holding task complexity constant. Using a repeated-measures design performance was measured on four tasks: two visual-motor drawing tasks, one visual-concentration task, and a combined visual-motor and visual-concentration task. Error analyses indicated generally poorer performance by hyperactives than by normals, and contrary to prediction, on two of the tasks hyperactives performed better without color than with. Hyperactives tended to perform faster than normals on the visual-motor tasks but performed slower than normals on tasks involving visual concentration. Implications of results and related evidence suggest (1) locus of added stimulation may be important in determining effects on performance, and (2) impulsivity or response speed may be unrelated to performance problems of hyperactive children.