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Living “in the zone”: hyperfocus in adult ADHD
Abstract
Adults with ADHD often report episodes of long-lasting, highly focused attention, a surprising report given their tendency to be distracted by irrelevant information. This has been colloquially termed "hyperfocus" (HF). Here, we introduce a novel assessment tool, the "Adult Hyperfocus Questionnaire" and test the preregistered a priori hypothesis that HF is more prevalent in individuals with high levels of ADHD symptomology. We assess (1) a pilot sample (n = 251) and (2) a replication sample (n = 372) of adults with or without ADHD. Participants completed highly validated scales, including the Conners' Adult ADHD Rating Scale, to index ADHD symptomology. Those with higher ADHD symptomology reported higher total and dispositional HF and more frequent HF across each of the three settings (school, hobbies, and screen time) as well as on a fourth subscale describing real-world HF scenarios. These findings are both clinically and scientifically significant, as this is the first study to comprehensively assess HF in adults with high ADHD symptomology and to present a means for assessing HF. Moreover, the sizable prevalence of HF in adults with high levels of ADHD symptomology leads to a need to study it as a potentially separable feature of the ADHD syndrome.
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“The term 'hyperfocus' (HF) has been used to characterise this state of heightened, focused attention that individuals with ADHD frequently report (Hupfeld et al., 2019).”
From Intensity and Variable Attention: Counter Narrating ADHD, from ADHD Deficits to ADHD Difference (2023) · cites this paper as Hupfeld et al., 2019
In the citing paper
“Hupfeld et al. (2019) notes that 'adults with ADHD often report episodes of long-lasting, highly focused attention'.”
From Intensity and Variable Attention: Counter Narrating ADHD, from ADHD Deficits to ADHD Difference (2023) · cites this paper as Hupfeld et al., 2019
In the citing paper
“Summarising previous research, Hupfeld et al. (2019) stress the multi-dimensional aspects of HF, that it includes engagement in certain tasks in certain environments, which raises similar questions over the role of environmental cues on ADHD behaviours, where 'only certain situations induce HF' (Hupfeld et al., 2019).”
From Intensity and Variable Attention: Counter Narrating ADHD, from ADHD Deficits to ADHD Difference (2023) · cites this paper as Hupfeld et al., 2019
In the citing paper
“Difficulty among people with ADHD to focus their attention on tasks that are not intrinsically rewarding (Hupfeld et al., 2019;Dodson, 2022), can be linked to the theory of Monotropism in an autistic context as an 'Interest Based Account of Autism' (Murray et al., 2005;Murray, 2019).”
From Intensity and Variable Attention: Counter Narrating ADHD, from ADHD Deficits to ADHD Difference (2023) · cites this paper as Hupfeld et al., 2019
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“For one, this seems to only consider distractability without acknowledging periods of intense focus during which people with ADHD find themselves so immersed in a given activity that we might even ignore bodily needs for as long as possible [82].”
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Egner, T. (2023) · Nature Reviews Psychology · doi:10.1038/s44159-023-00234-4 · Cited by 161
“Rather, they can become extremely engrossed in some activities, a state known as hyperfocus 169 .”
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“(highly focus) on their own enjoyable activities without being distracted by regular life activities.(39) The ‘hyperfocus’ traits in”
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“For example, some creators have playlists targeted to ADHD hacks, advice, medication, myths, and ones ones specifc to symptoms of ADHD such as hyperfocus (i.e., periods of intense sustained focus [74]) and rejection sensitivity dysphoria (see Section 1).”
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“We presented an adapted version of the AHQ developed by Hupfeld et al. (2019).”
Testing the relation between ADHD and hyperfocus experiences
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“Patients ≥18 years old also completed the ASRS V1.”
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“This included writing a first version of the text with no demands to make it ‘narrative coherent’ (c.f. Zenaro et al. 2019) for us all, just go on, be in onés own mind space, in the ‘deep flow’, with other words, ‘hyperfocus’ (HF) (Hupfeld, Abagis, and Shah 2019).”
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“Tendencies of individuals with ADHD to hyperfocus have been previously described [11], and recent studies suggest that individuals with ADHD report longer and more frequent episodes of hyperfocusing compared to individuals without ADHD [12, 13].”
BackgroundGrotewiel, M. M., Crenshaw, M. E., Dorsey, A., & Street, E. M. (2022) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-021-02539-0 · Cited by 35
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“These issues arise from differences in cognitive processing, such as difficulties with attention regulation, which may span from hyperfocus to a total lack of focus, bringing varied problems such as difficulties in task switching [16].”
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“1 3 Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities (2024) 36:307–327 Hyper-fixation (i.e., being particularly concentrated on one thing; Hupfeld et al., 2019), was identified as both a barrier and facilitator.”
Osborne, J. B., Zhang, H., Carlson, M., Shah, P., & Jonides, J. (2023) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1173989 · Cited by 17
Self-citation‘A storm of post-it notes’: Experiences of perceptual capacity in autism and ADHD
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“This finding seems to be in keeping with Hupfeld et al. ’ s (2019) assertion that there is a distinct ‘ deep flow ’ experience, associated with reduced sense of time, difficulty switching tasks or attending to personal needs.”
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“However, we observed no instances of participants experiencing hyperfocus in our data, i.e., losing oneself in an activity at high intensity for a number of hours [31].”
BackgroundValidation of the dispositional adult hyperfocus questionnaire (AHQ-D)
Hupfeld, K. E., Osborne, J. B., Tran, Q. T., Hyatt, H. W., Abagis, T. R., & Shah, P. (2024) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-024-70028-y · Cited by 14
“Therefore, we decided to move forward with validating the original AHQ-D as previously published 7 , using the original “frequency” answer choices (but, as described above, revising the “Generally…” instruction to occur only twice instead of at the start of each item).”
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“…‘ interest based nervous system ’ that argues those with ADHD ‘ pay too much attention to everything ’ and that there are no impairments during hyperfocus periods, which are reliant on the task being of interest (Dodson, 2022) and the environment and individual at the time (Hupfeld et al., 2019).”
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“Emerging evidence suggests that individuals with ADHD may be very creative, or able to ‘hyper-focus’ on things that engage their interest [9, 10].”
BackgroundHeterogeneity of associations between dissociation and attention deficit symptoms
Kandeğer, A., Boysan, M., Karaoğlan, G., Tekdemir, R., Şen, B., Tan, Ö., Sağlıyan, B., & Selvı, Y. (2022) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-022-03836-y · Cited by 8
“…and difficult-to-shift attention and diminished awareness of time and environment (like a hypnotic spell) has recently been associated with ADHD (Hupfeld et al., 2019; Ozel-Kizil et al., 2016; Groen et al., 2020) comparatively addressed the overlapping features of hyperfocus experiences with…”
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“Such tasks provide intrinsic motivation and can activate hyperfocus tendencies, a state of intense concentration often observed in individuals with ADHD (Ashinoff & Abu-Akel, 2021; Hupfeld et al., 2019).”
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Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in adults
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Limerence, Hidden Obsession, Fixation, and Rumination: A Scoping Review of Human Behaviour
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Nasser, N. M. A., Mohamad, M., Chan, L. F., Suppiah, S., Yusoff, A. N., Hamid, A. I. A., Ismail, W. S. W., & Sim, S. T. (2021) · Neurology Asia · doi:10.54029/2021msd · Cited by 7
Taner, H. A., Sarı, B. A., Kulaçoğlu, K. C., Mayalık, A., Mecit, H., Özekicioğlu, K., & Zorbaz, Z. O. (2022) · Entertainment Computing · doi:10.1016/j.entcom.2022.100486 · Cited by 9
The experience of effort in ADHD: a scoping review
Wagner, D., Mason, S. G., & Eastwood, J. D. (2024) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1349440 · Cited by 15
“Hyperfocus refers to a heightened state of focused attention and has been reported as a common experience for individuals with ADHD relative to controls (Hupfeld et al., 2019; for a review of hyper-focus, see Ashinoff and Abu-Akel, 2021).”
BackgroundProblematic Pornography Use (PPU): A Scientometric Perspective of 51 Years of Literature
Luca, I. D., Carollo, A., Gaglione, E., Doderovic, G., Peripoli, S., Esposito, G., Ciocca, G., & Corazza, O. (2025) · Sexuality & Culture · doi:10.1007/s12119-025-10401-9 · Cited by 6
“Individuals with ADHD often report episodes of “hyperfocus”, defined as a period of long-lasting, highly focused attention (Hupfeld et al., 2019a, b), which could facilitate the loss of control and escalation in use.”
Kandeğer, A., & Eğilmez, Ü. (2021) · Eurasian Journal of Medicine · doi:10.5152/eurasianjmed.2021.21179 · Cited by 6
Attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder disrupts selective mechanisms of action
Coubard, O. A. (2022) · Clinical Neurophysiology · doi:10.1016/j.clinph.2022.06.003 · Cited by 8
Factors related to the occurrence of and recovery from gaming disorder: A qualitative study.
Sun, A., Cash, H., Mullen, L., & Rae, C. D. (2023) · Technology Mind and Behavior · doi:10.1037/tmb0000101 · Cited by 8
Rhythmic Attention and ADHD: A Narrative and Systematic Review
Haigh, A., & Buckby, B. (2024) · Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback · doi:10.1007/s10484-023-09618-x · Cited by 5
“Given the increased incidence of hyperfocus in ADHD (Hupfeld et al., 2019 ; Ozel-Kizil et al., 2016 ), it is possible that this increase in the rhythmic recruitment of attentional resources may be a neural correlate to the intensification of atten - tion found in hyperfocus.”
Lingering on distraction: Examining distractor rejection in adults with ADHD
Zhang, H., Abagis, T. R., Steeby, C. J., & Jonides, J. (2024) · Visual Cognition · doi:10.1080/13506285.2024.2328379 · Cited by 8
“For example, clinicians often observe that individuals with ADHD exhibit a state of “hyperfocus,” in which they become deeply engrossed in activities to the point of neglecting their surroundings or other responsibilities (Hupfeld et al., 2019).”
Self-citationStrengths, Challenges, and Experiences of Neurodivergent Faculty in Academia
Bressman, N. R., Fritz, H. L., Freeman, A. R., Bradley, C. J., Koehl, M. A. R., Müller, U. K., & Carlson, H. N. (2026) · Integrative and Comparative Biology · doi:10.1093/icb/icag019 · Cited by 4
A participatory approach to iteratively adapting game design workshops to empower autistic youth
Gillespie‐Lynch, K., Grossman, E., Herrell, J., Riccio, A., Santos, J. D., Biswas, S., Kofner, B., Dwyer, P. S. R., Rosenberg, B., Hwang-Geddes, L., et al. (2023) · Frontiers in Education · doi:10.3389/feduc.2023.1179548 · Cited by 6
Hyperfocus and offending behaviour: a systematic review
Worthington, R., & Wheeler, S. (2023) · Journal of Forensic Practice · doi:10.1108/jfp-01-2022-0005 · Cited by 4
Department of Psychiatry, P. U. S. O. M., Yücens, B., Kart, A., Department of Psychiatry, U. O. H. S., Tümkaya, S., & Department of Psychiatry, P. U. S. O. M. (2021) · Psychiatry and Clinical Psychopharmacology · doi:10.5152/pcp.2021.21200 · Cited by 3
“53 Therefore, it is possible to say that obsessive beliefs related to controlling thoughts are seen more strongly in comorbid patients and this theoretically supports the view that it predicts ADHD comorbidity.”
BackgroundDoing Participatory ADHD-led Research
Hultman, L., & Hultman, M. (2024) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-66127-3_12 · Cited by 3
Cleare, S., & O’Connor, R. C. (2026) · Journal of Psychiatric Research · doi:10.1016/j.jpsychires.2026.01.036 · Cited by 3
Problematic internet use by children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
Chutko, L. S., Yakovenko, E. A., Surushkina, S. Y., Didur, M. D., Cherednichenko, D. V., Scheglova, L. V., Брониславовна, С. И., & Снегова, Е. В. (2026) · S S Korsakov Journal of Neurology and Psychiatry · doi:10.17116/jnevro202612601169 · Cited by 3
NeurodiverCITY: Leveraging the potential for neurodiverse deliberation in urban life
Tokarek͐, A., Ufel, W., & Grabkowska, M. (2025) · Urban Studies · doi:10.1177/00420980251390723 · Cited by 3
“Findings suggest that individuals with ADHD may experience hyperfocus, understood as a state of heightened concentration (Hupfeld et al., 2019), while others point to an elevated level of cognitive flexibility (Schippers et al., 2024).”
Aufmerksamkeitsdefizit-/Hyperaktivitätsstörung (ADHS) im Erwachsenenalter
Heine, S., & Exner, C. (2021) · Zeitschrift für Neuropsychologie · doi:10.1024/1016-264x/a000329 · Cited by 3
Adult Persons with ADHD and Their Lifestyle
Björk, A., Rönngren, Y., & Våge, L. (2023) · Autism and child psychopathology series · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-41709-2_7 · Cited by 3
Nash, C. (2025) · Sports · doi:10.3390/sports13060161 · Cited by 2
“However, psychological flow is similar to the hyperfocus described for those diagnosed with either ADHD [79,118] or autism [77].”
Haque, H., Hirvonen, J., Wang, S. H., Simola, J., Morales‐Muñoz, I., Cowley, B. U., Palva, J. M., & Palva, S. (2022) · bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · doi:10.1101/2022.12.14.519751 · Cited by 3
Tran, M. H., Wiklund, J., Antshel, K., Jhawar, N., & Montgomery, C. (2026) · Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice · doi:10.1177/10422587251392498 · Cited by 2
“For example, hyperfocus on areas of passion (Hupfeld et al., 2019) can boost persistence and dedication (Wiklund et al., 2017).”
Delayed goal-directed processing underlies inhibitory control challenges in adult ADHD
Osborne, J. B., Sellers, J., Zhang, H., Wang, S., Liberatore, S., Sripada, C., Shah, P., & Jonides, J. (2026) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-026-42307-3 · Cited by 2
Self-citationAvailability of Municipal Services for Neurodiverse People
İrkey, T., & Wiater, M. (2023) · Journal of Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Mental Health · doi:10.1007/s40737-023-00336-5 · Cited by 2
“Similar to these; losing track of time, failing to notice the world around you, the difficulty of stopping and starting a new task, feeling engrossed in the task, and getting stuck on details were noted by Hupfeld et al. (2018) have the possibility to effect transportation experience.”
BackgroundCıvan, H. Y., & Berkol, T. D. (2025) · The International Journal of Psychiatry in Medicine · doi:10.1177/00912174251376111 · Cited by 4
“23,24 Symptoms common to both ADHD and other psychiatric conditions include pro-crastination, lack of motivation, mood lability, frequent anxiety, and low self-esteem 25,26 .”
“ADHD isn’t Real” – Addressing ADHD Stigma Through Public Policy and Social Marketing Strategy
Pant, L. (2025) · Social Marketing Quarterly · doi:10.1177/15245004251376014 · Cited by 2
“Hyperfocus is more prevalent for individuals with high ADHD symptomology Hupfeld et al., (2019) Pant tailored targeting, diverse staf fi ng, recovery-focused messaging, and ongoing evaluation (Corrigan et al., 2013).”
Karaçul, F. E., & Arslan, G. (2025) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/10870547251370427 · Cited by 2
“Individuals with this presentation often struggle to stay focused (Kooij et al., 2010) and maintain motivation (Christiansen et al., 2019), though they may paradoxically demonstrate hyperfocus on tasks that are personally stimulating (Hupfeld et al., 2019).”
Carol, N. (2025) · Lifespan development and mental health. · doi:10.70322/ldmh.2025.10018 · Cited by 2
Metadata
- Authors
- Hupfeld, K. E., Abagis, T. R., & Shah, P.
- Affiliations
- University of Florida (US)
- University of Michigan (US)
- Corresponding author
- Hupfeld, Kathleen E.
- Venue
- ADHD Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorders
- Published
- 2018-09-28
- Volume
- 11
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 191-208
- ISSN
- 1866-6116 (ISSN-L)
- 1866-6647
- OpenAlex
- W2894319308
- Cited by
- 157
- References
- 61
- Citations by year
- 2026: 29 · 2025: 29 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 29 · 2022: 21 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 3
- FWCI
- 3.73
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Update notices
- correction (2019-03-08)
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- ADHD Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorders (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Institute of Education Sciences (R324A150023)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Mind wandering and attention
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Information Systems and Management › Personal Information Management and User Behavior
- Keywords
- hyperfocus, adult ADHD, attentional focus, distractibility, screen time, hobbies, school environment
- MeSH terms
- Attentional Bias, Adult, Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, Female, Humans, Male, Psychiatric Status Rating Scales, Case-Control Studies, Behavior, Addictive, Internet
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