Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): gender- and age-related differences in neurocognition
Abstract
Background: Despite the growing recognition that the clinical symptom characteristics associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) persist into adulthood in a high proportion of subjects, little is known about the persistence of neurocognitive deficits in ADHD. The objective was twofold: (1) to conduct a meta-analysis of neuropsychological studies to characterize attentional performance in subjects with adult ADHD by examining differences in ADHD versus normal control subjects; and (2) to investigate whether these differences vary as a function of age and gender. Method: Twenty-five neuropsychological studies comparing subjects with adult ADHD and healthy controls were evaluated. Statistical effect size was determined to characterize the difference between ADHD and control subjects. Meta-regression analysis was applied to investigate whether the difference between ADHD and control subjects varied as a function of age and gender across studies. Results: Tests measuring focused and sustained attention yielded an effect size with medium to large magnitude whereas tests of simple attention resulted in a small to medium effect size in terms of poorer attention functioning of ADHD subjects versus controls. On some of the measures (e.g. Stroop interference), a lower level of attention functioning in the ADHD group versus the controls was associated with male gender. Conclusions: Adult ADHD subjects display significantly poorer functioning versus healthy controls on complex but not on simple tasks of attention, and the degree of impairment varies with gender, with males displaying a higher level of impairment.
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The most prominent feature of adult ADHD is attentional dysfunction, associated especially with impairment in focused and sustained attention.
“Its most prominent feature is attentional dysfunction, associated especially with impairment in focused and sustained attention [21].”
From Adult ADHD and comorbid disorders: clinical implications of a dimensional approach (2017) · cites this paper as [21]
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- Authors
- Bálint, S., Czobor, P., Komlósi, S., Mészáros, Á., Simon, V., & Bitter, I.
- Affiliations
- Semmelweis University (HU)
- Corresponding author
- Bálint, S.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Psychological Medicine
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 2008-08-20
- Volume
- 39
- Issue
- 8
- Pages
- 1337-1345
- ISSN
- 0033-2917 (ISSN-L)
- 1469-8978
- OpenAlex
- W2030870175
- Cited by
- 161
- References
- 10
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 11 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 8 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 13 · 2014: 15 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 7
- FWCI
- 0.68
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Psychological Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology › Developmental and Educational Neuropsychology
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Keywords
- adult ADHD, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, neurocognitive impairment, sustained attention, focused attention, gender differences, age differences, Stroop interference, executive function
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Age Factors, Attention, Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, Cognition Disorders, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Humans, Male, Neuropsychological Tests, Psychometrics, Psychomotor Performance, Reaction Time, Reference Values, Sex Factors, Wechsler Scales, Comorbidity, Young Adult
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