Divided Attention Skills in College Students with ADHD: Is it Advantageous to have ADHD?

Abstract

Authors such as Hartmann (1993) and Jensen et al., (1997) have propounded the notion that ADHD is not a disorder, but instead a set of behaviors that can be adaptive. According to this perspective, ADHD symptoms were particularly useful in the distant past for activities such as hunting, gathering, and scanning the environment for signs of threat or danger. They hypothesize that, in certain situations, ADHD-type behaviors may even offer an advantage in today’s society, especially for brainstorming, creativity, cognitive flexibility, and independent thinking. For example, Hartmann (1993) contends that adults with ADHD have short, but focused attention spans that can be a benefit in some circumstances. He also suggests that adults with ADHD can outperform nondisabled adults during these short periods of time during tasks that have multiple tasks demands (i.e., divided attention). Barkley (2000) and Goldstein and Barkley (1998) have criticized these ideas, arguing that “in not a single instance of peer-reviewed, published literature have symptoms or consequences of ADHD have been found to hold an advantage.” Divided attention as it pertains to Hartmann’s theory has not, however, been investigated empirically in adults. Divided attention refers to the ability to attend simultaneously to multiple tasks (van Der Meere & Sergeant, 1987). It is required when an individual is driving and listening to the radio, answering telephones and completing paperwork, or balancing on a ladder while painting (Biggs, 1995; Hartmann, 1993). Shiffrin and Schneider (1977) define divided attention as the ability to process high levels of cognitive load simultaneously. In this model, limitations in attention are believed to be the result of restrictions in the rate, or speed, of cognitive processing. Thus, as cognitive load increases, a divided attention deficit will result in slower cognitive processing (van Der Meere & Sergeant, 1987). To assess attention in individuals with ADHD, clinicians and researchers have relied primarily on behavior rating scales and, more recently, norm-based computerized clinic-based measures of attention, such as the Continuous Performance Test (CPT). Numerous versions of the CPT have been developed, each with similar methodology. CPTs, however, vary with regard to task parameters, that is, the type of stimuli presented, duration of stimulus, latency given to respond, and overall length in terms of trials to be completed.