Once is enough! An analogue study on repeated validity assessment in adults with ADHD.

Performance validity tests (PVTs) can be seen as gatekeepers for valid neuropsychological assessment, by marking cognitive test scores that may not reflect true ability levels. The present study explored the significance of repeated validity testing of adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), by exploring the potential value of performance consistency across assessments. The operational definition of performance consistency was determined by calculating the mean variation in a participant's PVT scores across three separate assessments.

Perspectives on Autism Spectrum Disorder Diagnosis, Symptoms, Treatment and Gender Roles: A Qualitative Study of Similarities and Differences between Sexes.

This study aims to compare the experiences of women and men of different age groups with regard to their first autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis, symptoms, treatment, and gender roles to inform our understanding in clinical practice of differences as well as similarities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted amongst 22 women ( = 12) and men ( = 10) in three adult age groups regarding their diagnostic process, symptoms, treatment, and gender roles. Participants also filled out questionnaires on gender traits, social support, coping, and quality of life.

Measuring the Autistic Women's Experience (AWE).

We developed a Dutch questionnaire called the Autistic Women's Experience (AWE) and compared its psychometric properties to the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ). Whilst attenuated gender differences on the AQ have been widely replicated, this instrument may not fully capture the unique experience of autistic women. The AWE was co-developed with autistic women to include items that reflect autistic women's experience.

The role of executive functions in mediating the relationship between adult ADHD symptoms and hyperfocus in university students.

Background: Hyperfocus, a state of intense, narrow and prolonged attentional focus, has been associated with symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in both clinical and non-clinical populations. Hyperfocus may be explained by difficulties in executive control, typically observed in ADHD.

Aims: To investigate (1) whether ADHD and executive functions (EF) are associated with hyperfocus and (2) whether EF mediate the relationship between ADHD symptoms and hyperfocus.

The female side of pharmacotherapy for ADHD-A systematic literature review.

Objective: This comprehensive review examined sex differences in prescription rates and efficacy or effectiveness of pharmacotherapy treatment in girls and women with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), while identifying gaps in the scientific knowledge on this topic.

Method: A rigorous electronic database search was carried out in order to identify all published studies on female-specific effects of stimulants and non-stimulants in the treatment of ADHD. In total, 2672 studies were screened of which 21 studies (seven on prescription rates, 14 on effects of pharmacotherapy) met the inclusion criteria and were included for analysis.

Everyday Life Attention Scale (ELAS): Normative data of = 1,874 Dutch participants.

The Everyday Life Attention Scale (ELAS) is a sensitive and reliable self-report questionnaire assessing attentional capacities of respondents in nine different situations of daily life. The ELAS has the potential to add relevant information to the clinical evaluation of attention deficits, to guide treatment planning, as well as to evaluate treatment outcome. The present study provides normative data of 1,874 Dutch speaking participants, ranging from 18 to 76 years of age, with mixed levels of education and a roughly equal distribution in gender.

Exploring neuropsychological effects of a self-monitoring intervention for ADHD-symptoms in school.

Children who have symptoms of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) often experience disruptive and off-task behavior and lower school performance than would be expected based on their cognitive abilities. These behavior and achievement difficulties are a challenge to teachers, who often provide inclusive education for children with ADHD. This study explored whether a self-monitoring intervention can help children with ADHD-symptoms to reduce off-task behavior as well as improve their cognition.

A situation-specific approach to measure attention in adults with ADHD: The everyday life attention scale (ELAS).

This study describes the development and utility of a new self-report measure of attentional capacities of adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): the Everyday Life Attention Scale (ELAS). Different from previous attention scales, attentional capacities are rated for nine everyday situations. Study 1 investigated the factor structure, validity, and reliability of the ELAS in 1206 healthy participants.

Problematic Peer Functioning in Girls with ADHD: A Systematic Literature Review.

Objective: Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience many peer interaction problems and are at risk of peer rejection and victimisation. Although many studies have investigated problematic peer functioning in children with ADHD, this research has predominantly focused on boys and studies investigating girls are scant. Those studies that did examine girls, often used a male comparison sample, disregarding the inherent gender differences between girls and boys.

Sweat it out? The effects of physical exercise on cognition and behavior in children and adults with ADHD: a systematic literature review.

As attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most frequently diagnosed developmental disorders in childhood, effective yet safe treatment options are highly important. Recent research introduced physical exercise as a potential treatment option, particularly for children with ADHD. The aim of this review was to systematically analyze potential acute and chronic effects of cardio and non-cardio exercise on a broad range of functions in children with ADHD and to explore this in adults as well.

Executive Functions in Older Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Objective Performance and Subjective Complaints.

Although deficits in Executive Functioning (EF) are reported frequently in young individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), they remain relatively unexplored later in life (>50 years). We studied objective performance on EF measures (Tower of London, Zoo map, phonetic/semantic fluency) as well as subjective complaints (self- and proxy reported BRIEF) in 36 ASD and 36 typically developed individuals (n = 72). High functioning older adults with ASD reported EF-impairments in metacognition, but did not deviate in EF task performance, except for a longer execution time of the Tower of London.

Do blood plasma levels of oxytocin moderate the effect of nasally administered oxytocin on social orienting in high-functioning male adults with autism spectrum disorder?

Objective: The study investigated whether baseline plasma oxytocin (OXT) concentrations might moderate the effects of nasally administered OXT on social orienting.

Methods: Thirty-one males with Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and thirty healthy males participated in a double-blind placebo-controlled crossover trial. After administration of the compound, participants were viewing pictures from the International Affective Picture System that represented a systematic variation of pleasant, unpleasant and neutral scenes with and without humans.

Performance monitoring in autism spectrum disorders: A systematic literature review of event-related potential studies.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is marked by impairments in social-emotional situations, executive functioning, and behavioral regulation. These symptoms may be related to deficits in performance monitoring, i.e.

The Effects of Classroom Interventions on Off-Task and Disruptive Classroom Behavior in Children with Symptoms of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Meta-Analytic Review.

Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often exhibit problem behavior in class, which teachers often struggle to manage due to a lack of knowledge and skills to use classroom management strategies. The aim of this meta-analytic review was to determine the effectiveness of several types of classroom interventions (antecedent-based, consequence-based, self-regulation, combined) that can be applied by teachers in order to decrease off-task and disruptive classroom behavior in children with symptoms of ADHD. A second aim was to identify potential moderators (classroom setting, type of measure, students' age, gender, intelligence, and medication use).

Acute Effects of Whole Body Vibration on Inhibition in Healthy Children.

Objectives: Whole Body Vibration (WBV) is a passive exercise method known to have beneficial effects on various physical measures. Studies on adults furthermore demonstrated beneficial effects of WBV treatment on cognition (e.g.

Sex differences in orienting to pictures with and without humans: evidence from the cardiac evoked response (ECR) and the cortical long latency parietal positivity (LPP).

Objective: This study investigated the effect of social relevance in affective pictures on two orienting responses, i.e. the evoked cardiac response (ECR), and a long latency cortical evoked potential (LPP) and whether this effect would differ between males and females.

Detection of feigned attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

In recent years, there is an increasing awareness that individuals may purposely feign or exaggerate symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) to gain external incentives, including access to stimulant drugs or special academic accommodations. There are vast consequences of undetected feigned ADHD such as substantial costs covered by society for unnecessary assessments and treatments, unjustified occupation of limited medical resources and undermining society's trust in the existence of the disorder or the effectiveness of treatment. In times of economic crisis and cost savings in the medical sector, the detection of feigned ADHD is of importance.

Sluggish cognitive tempo and its neurocognitive, social and emotive correlates: a systematic review of the current literature.

Objectives: Since the elimination of items associated with Sluggish Cognitive Tempo (SCT) during the transition from DSM-III to DSM-IV from the diagnostic criteria of Attention-deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), interest in SCT and its associated cognitive as well as emotional and social consequences is on the increase. The current review discusses recent findings on SCT in clinical as well as community based ADHD populations. The focus is further on clinical correlates of SCT in populations different from ADHD, SCT's genetic background, SCT's association with internalizing and other behavioral comorbidities, as well as SCT's association with social functioning and its treatment efficacy.

Risky behavior in gambling tasks in individuals with ADHD--a systematic literature review.

Objective: The aim of this review was to gain insight into the relationship between Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and risky performance in gambling tasks and to identify any potential alternate explanatory factors.

Methods: PsycINFO, PubMed, and Web of Knowledge were searched for relevant literature comparing individuals with ADHD to normal controls (NCs) in relation to their risky performance on a gambling task. In total, fourteen studies in children/adolescents and eleven studies in adults were included in the review.

Processing of continuously provided punishment and reward in children with ADHD and the modulating effects of stimulant medication: an ERP study.

Objectives: Current models of ADHD suggest abnormal reward and punishment sensitivity, but the exact mechanisms are unclear. This study aims to investigate effects of continuous reward and punishment on the processing of performance feedback in children with ADHD and the modulating effects of stimulant medication.

Methods: 15 Methylphenidate (Mph)-treated and 15 Mph-free children of the ADHD-combined type and 17 control children performed a selective attention task with three feedback conditions: no-feedback, gain and loss.

Variants of the SLC6A3 (DAT1) polymorphism affect performance monitoring-related cortical evoked potentials that are associated with ADHD.

Although the 10-repeat (10R) variant of the dopamine transporter gene (DAT1 or SLC6A3) is suggested to be a risk allele for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) no relationships between DAT1 and measures of cognition in children with ADHD have yet been demonstrated. We studied neurophysiological correlates of performance monitoring during a feedback-based learning task by measuring cortical event-related potentials (ERPs) in a group of 65 10-13-year-old children half of whom were diagnosed as ADHD. The first part of the study investigates correlations between parent-reported behaviour problems and several performance monitoring components, while the second part investigates the relationship between DAT1 and these components.

Methylphenidate improves diminished error and feedback sensitivity in ADHD: An evoked heart rate analysis.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a developmental disorder that has previously been related to a decreased sensitivity to errors and feedback. Supplementary to the traditional performance measures, this study uses autonomic measures to study this decreased sensitivity in ADHD and the modulating effects of medication. Children with ADHD, on and off Methylphenidate (Mph), and typically developing (TD) children performed a selective attention task with three feedback conditions: reward, punishment and no feedback.

Differential effects of 5-HTTLPR and DRD2/ANKK1 polymorphisms on electrocortical measures of error and feedback processing in children.

Objective: Applying a probabilistic learning task we examined the influence of functional polymorphisms of the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) and the D2 dopamine receptor gene (DRD2/ANKK1) on error and feedback processing by measuring electrocortical event-related potentials (ERPs) in 10- to 12-year-old children.

Methods: Three pairwise group comparisons were conducted on four distinguishable ERP components, two of which were response-related, the other two feedback-related.

Results: Our ERP data revealed that children carrying the short (S) variant of the 5-HTTLPR gene process their errors more intensively while exhibiting less habituation to negative feedback with task progression compared to children who are homozygous for the 5-HTTLPR long (L) variant.