Creativity and ADHD: A review of behavioral studies, the effect of psychostimulants and neural underpinnings
Open accessAbstract
Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a debilitating disorder and most research therefore focuses on its deficits and its treatment. Research on the potential positive sides of ADHD is limited, and although a comprehensive overview of empirical studies on this subject is missing, it has been suggested that ADHD is associated with enhanced creativity. To identify important relations, trends and gaps in the literature, we review 31 behavioral studies on creativity and ADHD, distinguishing different research designs, age groups, creativity measurements and effects of psychostimulants, as well as reflecting the potential underlying neural mechanisms of creativity and ADHD. Most studies find evidence for increased divergent thinking for those with high ADHD scores (subclinical) but not for those with the disorder (clinical). The rates of creative abilities/achievements were high among both clinical and subclinical groups. We found no evidence for increased convergent thinking abilities in ADHD, nor did we find an overall negative effect of psychostimulants on creativity. Neuroscientific findings suggest candidate regions as well as mechanisms that should be studied further to increase our understanding of the relationship between creativity and ADHD. We propose research opportunities to boost the knowledge needed to better understand the potential positive side of ADHD.
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- Authors
- Hoogman, M., Stolte, M., Baas, M., & Kroesbergen, E.
- Affiliations
- Radboud University Nijmegen (NL)
- Utrecht University (NL)
- University of Amsterdam (NL)
- Corresponding author
- Hoogman, Martine
- Venue
- Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2020-12
- Volume
- 119
- Pages
- 66-85
- ISSN
- 0149-7634 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W3091783736
- Cited by
- 132
- References
- 27
- Citations by year
- 2026: 26 · 2025: 26 · 2024: 20 · 2023: 31 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 2
- FWCI
- 2.48
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UvA-DARE (University of Amsterdam) (publishedVersion)
- Radboud Repository (Radboud University) (submittedVersion)
- Utrecht University Repository (Utrecht University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Radboud Repository (Radboud University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Utrecht University Repository (Utrecht University) (submittedVersion)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Creativity in Education and Neuroscience
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Psychological and Educational Research Studies
- Keywords
- attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, creativity, divergent thinking, convergent thinking, psychostimulants, creative achievement
- MeSH terms
- Central Nervous System Stimulants, Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, Creativity, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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