New Understanding of ADHD – It’s an “Executive Function” Disorder
February 9, 2014
In recent years, there have been fundamental changes in our understanding of ADHD due to the tremendous advances in just the past decade of scientific research (numerous genetic and brain imaging studies ). Although the theory that ADHD is really a disorder in the development of executive functions has been promoted for many years by leading ADHD researcher, Russell Barkley, Ph.D., and others, it is now the accepted belief by most ADHD experts in the field.
What does this mean to parents and teachers? It means that ADHD is far more than a disorder of the three core symptoms (inattention, impulsivity, and sometimes hyperactivity). It is not just a neurobehavioral disorder. It is far more complex than that. ADHD is really a disorder in the developmental of the child’s executive functions – the management functions and range of central control processes in the brain…the self-directed actions a person takes to achieve their goals and solve problems. Kids with ADHD are developmentally delayed by a few years (about 30 percent) in their executive function and self-regulation abilities.
What are executive functions? We don’t know exactly all of the components, but most experts agree they involve:
- Inhibition (impulse control, ability to stop and think before making a response)
- Working memory (the very short term memory used for holding information active while working with other information)
- Planning, Prioritizing, and Organizing
- Arousal and Activation (being able to arouse effort and motivation to start or initiate tasks)
- Sustaining Attention (resisting distractions, especially when the task is tedious or not of interest)
- Emotional self-control
- Time Awareness (of how much time has passed, how long things take, keeping track of time)
- Goal-Directed Persistence (perseverance and follow through with actions needed to achieve goals)
- Shifting/Flexibility (adaptability and making adjustments when needed in thinking or behavior)
- Self-monitoring/Metacognition (being aware of and self-checking one’s own behavior, thought processes, and performance; strategy monitoring and revising)
See my blog of July 2012 that includes an excellent 5 minute video on the development of EFs, from The Center on the Developing Child, Harvard University. Watch for future blogs of strategies, supports, and resources that parents and teachers can use to help children and teens with executive function (EF) weaknesses; as well as those found in my books and other resources http://www.sandrarief.com/products/
by Sandra Rief, 2014
Tags: ADHD, executive functions, Rief
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