Attention Deficit

Dr. Russell Barkley also proposes that ADHD is related more to lost interest and motivation rather than with an inability to pay attention or concentrate. He contends that students lose interest quickly because they are not motivated.

ADHD is Directly Related to the Level of Stimulation

If one has ever watched an ADHD child play commercial video games like Sony Play Station or Xbox, it becomes obvious that ADHD is not only a matter of motivation or interest, but is directly related to level of stimulation.  Video games are intrinsically motivating because they offer the viewer a heightened state of arousal, stimulation, and response. ADHD people do not have trouble maintaining focus on a three-ring circus. Motivation is a secondary consideration at best. It is a fact that persons with ADHD frequently cannot attend to low-level stimuli like homework or balancing a checkbook. ADHD people know that balancing a checkbook or doing well on homework are quite essential to their personal wellbeing. They are typically quite motivated to perform these tasks, but they cannot. Their diffused attention pulls them away from the task unless they are redirected by an outside stimulus/agency. People with ADD/HD can pay attention but usually shift attention from task to task, never staying with or completing a current task. It may also take a much higher level stimulation to shift out of inattentiveness or to maintain attention for longer periods.

Curriculum Modification Only A Short-term Intervention

Agreeing that ADHD is a misnomer, Barkley contends that curriculum should be made more motivating and interesting to students.  This is not only an over simplification of the problem, but also a fundamentally flawed perspective. Curriculum modification is a standard practice of teachers who encounter students with ADHD. It is a sensible short-term intervention just as are incorporating a behavioral shaping program, token reinforcement, and placing the student closer to the teacher. But these are only short-term solutions as they tend only to change the student’s environment.  They do not change the student.

ADHD Leads To A Negative Self-Image

This being so, when an ADHD student repeatedly fails to successfully perform homework, class assignments, or tests, their self-image declines. They perceive themselves as unable to control their behaviors and begin to believe they are victims of an unfair world. Because they believe that they cannot control their behaviors and thus are not personally responsible for negative behaviors, they deem other’s negative reactions as excessively harsh, discriminatory, or unfair.  Complaints of this nature are seldom assigned to just one person or group; they will be directed to everyone.  A natural reaction to the perception of victimization is anger.  Anger may cause outbursts, defiance, and even hitting as solutions to even the most minor conflicts. This type of behavior may cause the individual to become a social outcast.  This in turn serves to reinforce his perceptions of unfairness and rejection.  Sometimes, rather than fight or deny the negative responses to his behaviors, he may elect to agree with his critics.  He may label himself ’stupid,’ ‘lazy,’ ‘bad,’ etc.  This frequently leads to a feeling of worthlessness and may result in an I don’t care or I don’t care what you think attitude. 

ADHD and Learned Behaviors

All of the aforementioned perceptions and behaviors are learned. They are indeed compensations which produce a disastrous cycle that destroys self-esteem, decreases opportunities for friendships, and lowers academic performance.  It is quite evident that modifying the environment is only a short-term solution that must be tempered with cognitive skill building. 

ADHD And Cognitive Skill Building

Cognitive skill building includes increasing organizational skills, short-term memory skills, visual tracking, time on-task, and discriminatory processing (filtering) skills, all of which are loosely termed executive functions by psychologists and educationalists. Psychologists and research scientists have long known that executive functions can be improved through training. But the true question must be put: why do we consider ADHD a disorder that cannot be improved? Diffused attention can be improved thus improving subordinate deficits. Society will only become aware of this through a paradigm shift.

"Cognitive exercises, including computer-assisted strategies, have been used to improve neuropsychological processes, predominately attention, memory, and executive skills. Both randomized controlled studies and case reports have documented the success of these interventions using intermediate outcome measures." –Rehabilitation of persons with traumatic brain injury, NIH Consensus Statement, 1998 Oct. 26-28;16(1):1-41.

Training Works For ADHD

It has been repeatedly demonstrated that provided the correct challenge, executive functions can be increased which would promote successes in the workplace and at school. It is founded in current cutting edge research in neuroplasticity and the human genome project. However, this is cutting edge, and the dinosaurs that rule the ADHD domain will not likely embrace it in their lifetimes.