Nowadays, there are multitudes of folks claiming they are subject to ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder). Had I been born later, I am sure I would d have been so diagnosed. But, I squeaked by, since no one knew much about this.
The problem is that we don’t really have a definite test to discern who does or does not manifest ADHD. Which has led to manifold prescriptions of Ritalin.
The issue is that folks with ADHD have difficulty focusing on a particular task. (In my case, I focus on multiple tasks, switching from one to the next in rapid succession.)
Folks who are easily distracted can be distracted in a slew of fashions. So, Dr. Han Zhang (University of Michigan and cohorts, Drs. Jahla Osborne,Priti Shah,John Jonides, plus Dr. A Miyake (U Colorado) were working up a standard score for distractibility. One that would make the diagnosis of ADHD clear.
Zhang surveyed 1220 folks (aged 18 to 34 y) about their distraction issues. These results were then subjected to statistical analyses to discern their level of distractibility. (This was called the ‘d factor”.)
This was then followed up with a more complete ADHD examination. There was a strong correlation between the d score and the subject’s and careless mistakes and/or frequently losing things. Moreover, there was a high correlation between the d factor and the ability to hyperfocus (long lasting, targeted attention).
This may be just what the clinicians need to help folks who really have ADHD.
