Effectiveness of executive function coaching on improving sustained attention deficit and planning skills in adults with attention deficit- hyperactivity disorder

ADHD coaching focuses on academic goal setting, progress monitoring, and dividing long-term projects into a sequence of specific, manageable assignments. With the emerging consensus that ADHD is a disorder of executive functioning; among the interventions used in ADHD, coaching may be more appropriate than traditional treatment models, and can certainly complement any intervention. The present study was conducted with the aim of effective coaching of executive functions on improving persistent attention deficit and planning skills in adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. In this study, 17 adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder diagnosed by a psychiatrist and evaluated with Barclay's executive functioning deficit scale - adult version were selected in an accessible manner and after checking the entry criteria, they were included in this study. For the participants in this research, 11 one-hour executive function coaching sessions were conducted, and the participants were evaluated before and after receiving this intervention using the Tower of London scales and continuous visual and auditory performance. The obtained results showed a significant difference (p≤0.05) in the variables of visual and auditory attention, sustained visual and auditory attention, and the time variable. The obtained results show that executive function coaching can be used as an intervention method alone or in combination with other interventions to improve attention deficit disorder in people with ADHD.