Anne Fleur Kortekaas-Rijlaarsdam

17 INTRODUCTION 1 Taken together, both from a theoretical perspective and from empirical studies, it is hypothesized that the mechanism behind medication efficacy in improving academic performance can be explained by (1) behavioral improvements; (2) cognitive improvements, and (3) increases in motivation and perceived competence, see Figure 1.1. Therefore, this thesis aims to unravel the mechanism behind MPH-effects on academic performance, thereby distinguishing between measures of academic effort (productivity) and qualitative improvements in academic performance (accuracy). A I MS AND OU T L I NE O F T H I S T H E S I S This Thesis The main aim of this thesis is to investigate the effects of MPH on academic performance and learning. To this end, we formulated three study-aims: (1) To quantify the effects of MPH on academic performance assessed in terms of both productivity and accuracy while distinguishing between the core academic subjects (math, reading and spelling); (2) To unravel this mechanism behind MPH-effects on academic performance, thereby distinguishing between measures of academic effort (productivity) and qualitative improvements in academic performance (accuracy); (3) To quantify the effects of MPH on feedback learning in children with ADHD and the interaction between MPH and reward on math performance in children with ADHD. Figure 1.1 Proposed model for the mechanism by which stimulant medication may improve academic performance in children with ADHD