The influence of target-shooting sport on inattentive, hyperactive and impulsive children

Project title

The influence of target-shooting sport on inattentive, hyperactive and impulsive (ADHD) children – a controlled study of best practice

Project manager

Annegrete Gohr Månsson

Project description

Background:
Practicing target-shooting sport in Danish shooting associations requires focused attention and motoric steadiness. Since the 1990s parental and teachers reports suggest that children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may benefit from participating in target-shooting sport. The purpose of this study is therefore to investigate how practicing target-shooting sport in school time in Danish shooting associations influences inattentive, hyperactive and impulsive symptoms (ADHD) in children.

Objectives:
The purpose of this study will be to investigate how practicing target shooting sport in a Danish riffle club influences inattentive, hyperactive and impulsive (ADHD) children.

Methods:
A mixed method approach is used. A questionnaire survey and a computer test will be combined with a case study consisting of interviews and observations.

Perspectives:
To the best of our knowledge, earlier research has never investigated the influence of practicing target-shooting sport in school time for children with ADHD or ADHD-symptoms. For this reason, if effective, the intervention will be a relevant addition to the current intervention available to children with difficulties of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity (ADHD). The results may further add in the continued search for effective and motivating non-pharmacological interventions that may help and support the lives of children with ADHD.

Start date and expected end date

01.01.2016 - 31.12.2018

Main supervisor

Professor Kirsten Kaya Roessler

Co-supervisors

Associate Professor Mette Elmose Andersen, SDU; Søren Dalsgaard, Aarhus University

The project is carried out under

CH:LD and InCORE Research Groups

Collaborators

DGI, SDU, Aarhus University

Funding

Tryg Foundation

Keywords

Children, ADHD, hyperactivity, inattentiveness, impulsivity, physical activity, shooting sport

Results

The results of the quantitative study are published in the Nordic Journal of Psychiatry (May, 2019) and the results of the qualitative study are being published in thePædagogisk Psykologisk Tidsskrift (PPT) from no. 5/2019 until October 2019 and can then be retrieved on the website.

The project and the first results are mentioned on SDU and DGI's website, as well as on Videnskab.dk and can be viewed with the following links:

• SDU:https://www.sdu.dk/da/om_sdu/fakulteterne/sundhedsvidenskab/nyt_sund/skydning_hjaelper_med_adhd
• DGI: https://www.dgi.dk/om/presse/presserum/seneste-nyt/skydeidraet-paa-skoleskemaet-kan-hjaelpe-boern-med-adhd
• Videnskab.dk: https://videnskab.dk/krop-sundhed/skydeidraet-ser-ud-til-at-hjaelpe-boern-med-adhd