March 10, 2021
To gauge the extent of stigma towards persons with ADHD, a European research team hired a company specialized in market and social research to conduct a poll of some five thousand randomly selected Germans. Just over a thousand completed the interview, representing a response rate of only one in five. The team acknowledged, "Although non-responder bias has to be considered to be important, ethical considerations prohibited the collection of any detailed information on non-respondents." The sample had slightly more women and elderly persons, and a higher average level of educational attainment relative to the German population as a whole. Sampling weights we reused to compensate for these discrepancies.
The poll relied on computer-assisted telephone interviews. Interviews began with prerecorded vignettes of either an a12-year-old child or a 35-year-old adult exhibiting core symptoms of ADHD (such as "careless mistakes in schoolwork," "does not follow through on instructions," easily distracted by extraneous stimuli, "loses things", "leaves his place in the classroom or when sitting at the dining table"). Half of those interviewed were presented with child vignettes and half with adult vignettes. The gender of the person described varied randomly.
On a scale of one to five, respondents were asked to indicate levels of agreement with two statements: 1. "Basically, we are all sometimes like this person. It's just a question of how pronounced this state is." 2. "All in all, the problems of Robert / Anne are abnormal." For both child and adult vignettes, two out of three respondents agreed that "we are all sometimes like this person." One in three respondents considered the problems depicted in the child vignettes as abnormal. That dropped to one in four in the adult vignettes.
Next, respondents were asked whether they ever had a problem like this and whether someone among their family or close friends ever had to deal with such a problem. For both vignettes, one in four acknowledged having had a problem like this, and half said a close friend or family member had such a problem.
On the assumption that "negative emotional reactions are an important consequence of negative stereotypes, leading to separation, discrimination and status loss," respondents were probed for their specific emotional reactions. "I feel annoyed," " react angrily," and" provokes my incomprehension" were interpreted as indicating varying levels of anger. "Provokes fear" and "Makes me feel insecure" were seen as indicating fear. "I feel uncomfortable" was viewed as indicating somewhere between fear and anger. On the other hand, "I feel the need to help," "I feel pity," and "I feel sympathy" were interpreted as "pro-social" responses.
Pro-social reactions were by far the most common. Over two-thirds felt a need to help a child, and over half to help an adult, in such a situation. In both instances, almost half felt sympathy, and a half or more felt pity. On the other hand, a quarter of respondents in each case felt annoyed, and just under one in five felt uncomfortable. Almost one in seven reacted angrily to the child vignette, and almost one in six to the adult vignette. Fear was the least frequent emotional reaction.
In the case of adults, respondents were also asked about their willingness to accept the person described in the vignette in seven social situations:
· Working together
· As a neighbor
· Marrying into the family
· Introducing to a friend
· Renting a room
· Recommending for a job
· Taking care of children
While three out of four respondents were willing to accept such persons as co-workers, only one in three would recommend them for a job. Two out of three would accept such persons as neighbors, and almost as many to marry into the family. Three out of five would very willingly introduce such persons to friends. Slightly over half would rent a room to them. But less than one in three would be willing to have such individuals take care of their children.
Older respondents were more likely to see the problems as "abnormal" and to seek greater social distance. Women, and respondents with higher levels of education, were less likely to see the problems as abnormal and more likely to respond in pro-social ways.
Though showing most Germans to be accepting of persons with ADHD, these findings still indicate a significant degree of stigma, though less than for other psychiatric conditions such as depression, schizophrenia, or alcohol dependence.
Sven Speerforck, Susanne Stolzenburg,Johannes Hertel, Hans J. Grabe, Maria Strauß, Mauro G. Carta, Matthias C.Angermeyer, Georg Schomerus, “ADHD, stigma and continuum beliefs: A population survey on public attitudes towards children and adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder,†Psychiatry Research (2019) DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2019.112570.
A recent study published in Alpha Psychiatry sheds light on the connection between ADHD, empathy, and narcissistic traits. Researchers aimed to evaluate how pharmacological treatments—specifically psychostimulants—affect empathy deficits and pathological narcissism in adults with ADHD. These findings could have important implications for enhancing treatment outcomes and improving social functioning.
Study Overview
The study involved 75 adult ADHD patients who were treated with either methylphenidate or atomoxetine. Researchers assessed levels of narcissistic traits and empathy using validated tools such as the Pathological Narcissism Inventory (PNI) and the Empathy Quotient (EQ). Measurements were taken before treatment and after three months of therapy.
Key Findings
Why It Matters
Adults with ADHD often struggle with social interactions, partly due to empathy deficits and personality traits like narcissism. By addressing these challenges through psychostimulant treatment, patients may experience better social and emotional well-being. This study underscores the importance of viewing ADHD treatment as not just a way to manage symptoms but also a means to improve overall quality of life.Takeaway
Effective ADHD treatment goes beyond managing attention and hyperactivity. By improving empathy and reducing narcissistic traits, psychostimulants can foster healthier relationships and enhance social functioning. This research highlights the need for comprehensive care that considers the broader psychological and interpersonal effects of ADHD.
According to Fosco et al. (2019), “Inhibitory control has long been considered a central neurocognitive process in ADHD, with ADHD groups typically showing medium-sized impairments relative to their typically-developing peers on common inhibition paradigms.”
Learning to play a musical instrument requires effective coordination of physical movements and sound signals to produce music. Musical training involves repetitive practice, perfecting connections between perceptions, muscular actions, and cognition.
Noting that listening to music activates the brain’s reward circuits in both children and adults, that “Being internally motivated during learning experiences increases learning capacity and efficiency, and this greater engagement is reflected in increased electrical brain activity following musical training,” and that “Training music in a social environment increases positive feelings of bonding through shared emotions and group synchrony,” a Montreal-based research team carried out a systematic review and meta-analysis of the peer-reviewed medical literature from 1980 to 2023 to learn what effect music training might have on inhibition control.
Outcomes:
The team found eight randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 14 other longitudinal studies that met search criteria, including:
Meta-analysis of all 22 longitudinal studies with a combined total of 1,734 participants yielded a small-to-medium effect size improvement in inhibitory control. Variation (heterogeneity) in outcomes between individual studies was small, and there was no sign of publication bias. Restricting the analysis to the eight RCTs with a combined total of 641 participants, however, yielded a medium-to-large effect size improvement, with negligible heterogeneity, meaning the outcome was consistent across RCTs.
The Take-Away: The team concluded, “Music training plays a privileged role compared to other activities (sports, visual arts, drama) in improving children’s executive functioning, with a particular effect on inhibition control.” I cannot, however, recommend this as a therapy for ADHD until RCTs show it reduces symptoms of ADHD and/or real world impairments associated with the disorder.
Organic farming aims to protect biodiversity, promote animal welfare, and avoid using pesticides and fertilizers made from petrochemicals. Some pesticides are designed to target insects’ nervous systems but can also affect brain development and health in larger animals, including humans.
Many people believe organic food is healthier than conventionally produced food, which might be true for certain foods and health factors. But does eating organic food during pregnancy impact the chances of a child developing ADHD or autism spectrum disorder (ASD)?
In Norway, researchers can use detailed national health records to study these connections on a population-wide level, thanks to the country’s single-payer healthcare system and national registries.
The Norwegian Mother, Father, and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) invites parents to participate voluntarily and has a 41% participation rate. The study includes:
For this research, a team tracked 40,707 mother-child pairs from children born between 2002 and 2009. They used questionnaires to measure how much organic food mothers consumed during pregnancy. ADHD and ASD symptoms in children were assessed using validated rating scales.
The final analysis included:
The researchers adjusted for factors like maternal age, education, previous pregnancies, BMI before pregnancy, smoking and alcohol use during pregnancy, birth year and season, and the child’s sex.
The researchers concluded that eating organic food during pregnancy has no meaningful effect on the likelihood of a child developing ADHD or ASD. They stated, “The results do not indicate any clinically significant protective or harmful effects of eating organic food during pregnancy on symptoms of ADHD and ASD in the offspring. Based on these findings, we do not recommend any specific advice regarding intake of organic food during pregnancy.”
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