Self-reported Adult Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms Among College Students

Abstract

Objective: Report the distribution of scores from the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) and estimate the prevalence of self-reported attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms as compared to clinical diagnoses. Participants: Participants were 1,080 college students, divided into 3 groups: (1) no ADHD diagnosis (n = 972), (2) diagnosed with ADHD but no current pharmacologic treatment (n = 54), and (3) diagnosed with ADHD with current pharmacologic treatment (n = 54). Methods: The ASRS was administered during the fourth annual interview of an ongoing longitudinal cohort study. Results: As expected, individuals who were never clinically diagnosed with ADHD had lower ASRS scores (M = 4.0, SD = 3.3) than individuals diagnosed with ADHD who were either under current pharmacologic treatment (M = 7.9, SD = 4.0) or not under treatment (M = 6.3, SD = 3.7). Overall, 10.3% _wt of individuals without an existing clinical diagnosis of ADHD had high levels of ADHD symptoms. Conclusions: A substantial minority of undiagnosed individuals may benefit from a clinical assessment for ADHD.

Keywords:

• ADHD symptoms
• Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS)
• attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• college students
• undiagnosed ADHD

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This study was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA14845, Dr. Arria, Principal Investigator) and an investigator-initiated award from Ortho-McNeil-Janssen, New Brunswick, NJ (grant 992216158). Special thanks are extended to Kevin O’Grady and Eric Wish for their input on an earlier draft of this paper, as well as Sarah Kasperski, Lauren Stern, Emily Winick, Elizabeth Zarate, the interviewing team, and the participants.