Does ADHD truly confer greater creativity? If you get your science news only from your Facebook feed, you might think so. The truth is more complicated.
Recently, preeminent ADHD research scientist Russell Barkley and I simultaneously commented on an extremely misleading article on this topic. It was at the Scientific American website, not a staff-written piece but rather from a contributor. I’ll share our responses below.
But first. Understanding complex issues requires complex thought—and tedious research. The online world, however, skews towards simplistic opinion—and clickbait. Even academics in the field of psychology with little training in hard science fall short of rigorous thinking on scientific topics.
The Two ADHD Worlds: The Real and the Online
1. In the “real” world, ADHD-focused clinical and scientific investigators toil in the trenches. They have little time or inclination for blogging or writing op-eds. (As if The New York Times and most other online news organizations ever showed interest in legitimate ADHD experts).
2. In the “online” world, unqualified self-promoters spin their sketchy—but quite attention-getting—theories.
If we read or view only sensationalism from the charlatans, we might never see the Mack truck-sized holes in their arguments. To make matters worse, these charlatans often go “viral.” Like a virus, their harmful distortions risk insidiously further weakening the public’s understanding of this highly variable condition called ADHD.
Years ago, I asked readers to name the most irksome ADHD myth they hear (Annoying Things People Say About ADHD). The creativity bit came up—prominently.
I’ve seen even people with ADHD who have benefited from medication applaud these charlatans. They seem to take for granted ADHD’s status as a legitimate condition that confers proper treatment. They fail to see the connections between the charlatans’ propaganda, public opinion, and public policy.
I cannot counter all the logical, factual flaws in all the pieces about ADHD online. It was easier in the early days. There was less of it but still time-consuming. Now, we seem to be drowning in it. So, I try to be selective.
“The Creative Gifts of ADHD”
For example, consider this problematic piece published on Scientific American’s site: “The Creative Gifts of ADHD”. Many readers will conclude, “Oh, it’s Scientific American, so it must be true.” Alas, even venerable institutions now compete in the clickbait world. As a result, they compromise editorial integrity by accepting free content from “guest” authors. The more clickbait’ish the title, the more the traffic.
The website does, however, include this tiny, hard-to-find disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the author and are not necessarily those of Scientific American.
The author reposted the piece a few weeks later on Alternet.org. This time, it sported an even more provocative clickbait headline: ADHD Brains Are the Most Creative: Why Do We Treat It Like a Disability?
The headline provides the reader’s first clue: the article will be binary nonsense. That is, this notion that there are “ADHD brains” and “non-ADHD brains.” Instead, we have millions of individuals who have various manifestations of a highly variable syndrome, along with endless variations on other human characteristics. By the way. creativity is a human characteristic.
After I left a comment at Scientific American, I read other comments.
To my surprise, Russell Barkley, PhD, a preeminent research scientist in the realm of ADHD, had already left a comment. He has given me permission to re-print it here.
Please share this on Facebook, Twitter, in personal e-mails, or whenever you need a solid counter to the online nonsense. Instead of dumbing-down the dialogue around ADHD—thus losing intelligent people—it seems to me that we do better to emphasize the complexities of the human brain.
Dr. Russell Barkley Responds:
Despite repeated assertions by trade book authors on ADHD, especially in adults, and now the author, Mr. Kaufman, the entire body of evidence available on any link of ADHD with increased creativity does not support such a link.
What it does show is that people with ADHD range across the entire spectrum of creativity, variously measured, as does the general population. But there is no significant correlation between ADHD or its symptom severity and increased creativity.
This does not mean that some people with ADHD are not creative, for some surely are. It means that such creativity, among many other psychological abilities, comes not simply by virtue of the person having ADHD. Cherry-picking cases of creative people who have ADHD is not evidence of such a link. It is tantamount to selecting red-headed people with ADHD and then asserting that there is some important association between the two. Such anecdotes are not evidence.
Also noteworthy in Kaufman’s post: The apparent scientific citations marshaled to support the assertion that ADHD is related to increased creativity show no such thing. Indeed, several of the scientific papers found just the opposite or were not of studies of ADHD and creativity at all.
Deciphering Citations
For instance, one article (the second citation) is simply a study of the link between mildly lower levels of cognitive inhibition and creativity, which does not focus on ADHD at all. Yes, somewhat lower levels of mental inhibition have a small but significant association with generating a wider diversity of ideas, but this refers to rather small decreases in inhibition in the typical population, not to clinically severe levels of impulsivity as seen in ADHD.
As another example, one of the other studies cited (by Zentall) had nothing to with creativity but rather with production deficits associated with ADHD.
And, the fourth citation is not a study of creativity in ADHD but of social cooperation and rule-following.
One could go on dissecting the list of supposedly supportive citations about ADHD increasing creativity but this should make the point: Such evidence is thin.
Some Studies Associate ADHD with Decreased Creativity
Most studies of ADHD that actually measured creativity did not find any such link and a few found the disorder to decrease certain kinds of creativity.
Focusing on the one study of gifted ADHD participants and their somewhat better creativity relative to other gifted but non-ADHD people hardly provides overwhelming support for the author’s thesis. The fact that all were gifted to begin with precludes generalizing these results to all people with ADHD.
This sloppy scholarship and highly selective citation ignore the disconfirming studies. To get a better research sampling as well as several reviews, use Google Scholar to search the science journals for studies on this issue.
The totality of such evidence refutes the author’s thesis. ADHD is a serious neurodevelopmental disorder associated with impairments in multiple domains of major life activities. While some with the disorder may function well in some areas of life (e.g., Michael Phelps and swimming, Ty Pennington and destroying and rebuilding houses, Glenn Beck and political commentary, etc.), they often have struggles with other areas of functioning (DWIs, managing money, social relationships, etc.).
But even if well-adjusted, these unusual success stories do not represent the more typical outcomes of children with ADHD followed to adulthood, as I found in my own Milwaukee longitudinal study and as evident in all other longitudinal research.
We can celebrate the successes of some people with ADHD without misrepresenting the disorder as somehow conveying cognitive gifts or other benefits, which it clearly does not.
In more than 10,000 scientific studies now published on the disorder, none found that ADHD conveyed some increased benefit in mental functioning or psychological abilities beyond what is found in the general population not having ADHD. In nearly all instances where differences in the ADHD group were noted, they were deficits, not advantages.
Let Us Celebrate Successes, Not Romanticize an Impairing Condition
Kauffman closes his piece with this:
Consider the case of John, who in 1949 attended Eton College and dreamed of becoming a scientist. However, last in his class, he received the following comment on his report card:
“His work has been far from satisfactory… he will not listen, but will insist on doing his work in his own way… I believe he has ideas about becoming a Scientist; on his present showing this is quite ridiculous, if he can’t learn simple biological facts, he would have no chance of doing the work of a Specialist, and it would be a sheer waste of time on his part, and of those who have to teach him.”
This remark refers to Sir John B. Gurdon, winner of the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his revolutionary research on stem cells. Like so many other highly creative, competent individuals, he might have been referred for testing and given the label “attention deficit hyperactive disorder”.
Hypotheticals about Nobel laureates are just that, hypothetical. It is hardly a confirming instance that Gurdon had ADHD, would have been diagnosed as such, or that creative people are at higher risk of being improperly diagnosed with ADHD.
By all means, let us celebrate, encourage, and support the talents of individuals. But let us not romanticize them as arising from a serious neurodevelopmental disorder such as ADHD. This does a great disservice to the many others with the disorder who struggle daily to cope with and compensate for its significant adverse impact on their lives.
—Russell A. Barkley, PhD
More Posts from/about Russell Barkley, PhD
Dr. Russell Barkley: When ADHD Kids Grow Up – Reviews and endorsements of his research team’s pivotal book, ADHD in Adults: What the Science Says.
Hey CDC, Why Misinform on ADHD?
Background: The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has been promoting therapy before medication for young children with ADHD. Sounds reasonable, eh? Except it’s not. A guest post below from Dr. Barkley explains the details.
27 thoughts on “Russell Barkley on ADHD and Creativity”
I know it’s only anecdotal, however when ever I go to workshops for creative professionals there is always a number of people who identify as having an ADHD diagnosis (in the UK where diagnosis rates are lower ,) to a greater extent than could be extrapolated out to the general population. It’s quite possible that having an ADHD diagnosis may correlate to being slightly more likely to score higher in certain traits of creativity than the average person and if you score well above the average person in creativity, that may correlate with having a very high chance of being eligible for an ADHD diagnosis. As someone with a diagnosis who is not convinced how valid it is, co-morbid disorders complicate things, When I watch people on TV/ social media I can usually spot people with my connecting thunking style which is so often associated with ADHD and other neurodevelopmental disorders. I appreciate the current definition of ADHD is a dimensional disorder of number/severity of certain traits distributed throughout the general population and I very much lean to the humans are all neurodiverse rather than the identity politics of neurotypical vs neurodivergent nonsense, however there does seem to be strong correlations between certain thinking styles and higher deficits in traits associated with ADHD/ ASD/ dyslexia etc. If medications helps people to minimise the negative traits and so therefore can better get on with creative productivity than brilliant. I have also heard of comediennes with ADHD who don’t take medication, as they say they find it makes them less creative. it’s an interesting topic without any definitive answer. My own experience with meds has not been great so I can’t really speak from personal experience wether it enhances or reduces my creativity or changes my thinking style. One things first certain your right just having an ADhd diagnosis in itself does not automatically make you some sort of creative genius, I wish . I definitely don’t think like the average person! BTW Gina has anyone suggested you have many traits strongly associated with Autism. Opposites attract an all….
Hi Twitnit,
Thanks for your thoughtful comment.
A huge problem with anecdotes about medication is that they often involve Adderall, which definitely is the most problematic Rx. Folks don’t know what they don’t know about ADHD treatment — and they mostly don’t know a LOT.
Interesting, no one has ever suggested that I might fit on the ASD spectrum. I wonder what prompted that perception for you?
Most people seem to find me creative, warm, funny, able to shift topics on a dime, and multi-talented with a great appreciation of the absurd. For what that’s worth.
The thing is, ADHD isn’t about a different “thinking style.” It’s about having a greater degree of disinhibition (though some become so fearful of being disinhibited, due to lifelong problems it can bring, they become the opposite). And what this looks like can come down to the individual who has their own experience of this highly variable syndrome we call ADHD.
To some people, disinhibition means more impulsive creativity, less over-thinking. To others, it means they tell themselves they are an artist when really they have trouble organizing themselves. They just don’t have a better explanation.
An early essay about reading my book had this theme. The writer and her husband are both late-diagnosis ADHD. They met in art school. When she found my book, she had the epiphany….there was a big difference between folks in art school who were simply disinhibited, disorganized, etc. and those who were “creative.” And of course the two can overlap.
Over the years, I’ve found that every “truism” about ADHD can be countered with another “truism”. That includes “opposites attract” and “like attracts like.” 🙂
Cheers
g
Happy Christmas Gina,
Really should stay away from ADHd as it feeds my OCD ha ha long story. Firstly thank you for your reply, your always so fast with the reply’s including to counter arguments different to your own educated view. I do appreciate that you have greater experience with a range of people diagnosed/pre-diagnosis with ADHD, having worked/contributed to the field for such a long time. I am not trying to suggest being disorganised somehow contributes to creativity, although dishinibition probably does to some extent. Not conforming can allow you to think outside the box. Example, during one of my MA lectures in a class of over 20 we were asked to draw a line from one dot to the other. Everyone drew a straight line apart from muggins here, who drew a wiggly one. I have many traits associated with Dyslexia, Autism and ADHD. Have 2 of those labels, which don’t seem to mean much. Another thing maybe you can explain, it seems if ADHD in its essence is a number of/ severity of certain traits that when put together are problematic enough to warrant the label disorder. It therefore must be by its nature, environmental dependent and so the cut off point, cannot be fixed. Sounds like a man made categorisation of human diversity to me. We all have to live in the environment as it is though and if there is help for things we find difficult such as medication/therapy then I’m all for it. If people choose not to take medication because they find it impinges on there creativity then that is a perfectly valid reason not to, sure it’s a trade off, hopefully they have other systems in place to help with the more negative aspects. I can’t speak for the USA, however comediennes in the UK are forever coming out as having ADHD, to the point it’s become a joke in itself, recently a comedienne announcing at the beginning of his set he doesn’t have ADHD. ‘ADHD’ traits as recognised by the disorder may not be a different way of thinking, however I stand by my original argument that it is probably highly correlated with a certain thinking style and creativity. BTW people with Autistism can be warm, have a sense of the absurd and change topics at a Dime. I’m not saying I think you are Autistic btw. Just some of your behaviours are similar to some traits associate d with Autism. Unbelievable drive work ethic and ability to focus relentlessly. Also Women do present differently and inflexibility is often less of a problem. Thanks for listening, hope your taking a day off for Christmas. I would if I wasn’t so darn ill with possible covid on top of a deteriation of mental health related to recent stressful and sad events. To a better 2025!
Hi Twitnit,
I’m so sorry you are dealing with possible covid (hope it’s not!) on top of everything else. Yes, let’s hope for a better 2025, though that’s been a huge challenge for many of us.
To your point about ADHD not being fixed….absolutely. ADHD can be very environmentally dependent. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that if we were to suddenly abolish capitalism and neurotypical hegemony that folks with ADHD would find an easier way in the world. Just the opposite, in many cases.
The thing is, when we’re talking about ADHD, we are talking about a dimensional condition. There are potentially hundreds of genetic contributors, each contributing in small ways and in the context of other perhaps-countervailing genes (e.g. the person who is highly risk taking but also a meticulous planner). And these genes are all found in wide distribution throughout the human genome.
In other words, these traits are not unique to people with ADHD. These are human traits. We’re all impulsive, impatient, want the fun thing before the hard thing, curious, motivated by curiosity and interest, etc. The difference is the degree to which we humans have those traits AND that they are causing problems for us in life.
Many folks with ADHD know their experience — and often that of family members and maybe friends. They might read online and pick out the issues they can identify with, not seeing the rest.
But take it from one who has sat in a room month after month, for 15 years, with late-diagnosis adults — a constantly changing group: Adults with ADHD are individuals. What they have in common are various issues within this highly variable syndrome. With all the rest of personality to consider.
I’ve seen the wildly creative — the ones I call on to figure out what to do about the building’s sudden power outage, and they always figure it out. Toot sweet! I’ve also seen those hamstrung by black-and-white thinking, inability to plan anything (even things they want to do), and much more. My point was that many outside observers will dismiss their chaotic lives as “eccentric” or “artistic” or “freedom loving.” But really they are struggling to self-actualize on any level.
I live in the Bay Area, where there is a lot of romanticizing of ADHD, ASD, etc.. It serves the ego of those doing the romanticizing — look at how broad-minded and generous they are. It doesn’t help the objects of their romanticizing, though.
I’m not one of those to say “Medicate the world!” Rather, I’m mindful of my MANY friends with late-diagnosis Adult ADHD who are harmed by the fantasists’ propaganda about the “gifts of ADHD.” It hurts them in ways that most people do not realize. All sorts of ways.
I also do not mean that those personal traits I mention are antithetical to ASD. I just mention them because simply reading a person’s blog does not a full character draw.
I would not be ashamed to have ASD. It would just be a fact of life. I am definitely not perfect, but my many flaws do not fit neatly anywhere in the DSM-5. My family genome generally favors depression and anxiety.
Take care of yourself!
Gina
I know this is an old article, but it seems you are still responding to comments.
As a person with ADHD, this article saddens me a lot. Despite my ADHD traits, I have a kind of successful career, I have a bachelor’s in Computer Engineering and a master’s degree in Mechatronics, and I have a good job as a System Engineer for a huge automotive company. I was always distracted in my daily life, forgetting dates, not doing my homework, forgetting where I put things, and wasting money because of lack of organization. Keeping up with my responsibilities was always a struggle.
But what sustained my self-esteem a little bit was thinking that I have strong points. I was always good at problem-solving and brainstorming, I was a fast learner and had a lot of different project ideas (today I have more than 150 written down).
I thought that some of these qualities were improved because of ADHD. To think this way I wouldn’t have to believe that I have a disability or a mental illness. ADHD was in my understanding a different kind of brain characterized by a different connection pattern in the neurons. Yes, it gave me a lot of problems, but it also brought some positive points. If I could find a way to utilize the good sides of ADHD I could turn it into an advantage. Just like different body structures make you better suited for a sport than another. ADHD wasn’t a curse, it was just a characteristic of who I am.
But if ADHD just brings downsides, if it’s a mental illness, it feels bad to think what I could have been without it, that I have a disability in my brain that makes me unable to finish any of the projects that I invested so much thinking and inspiration. Now it’s so sad to think that it will also be transferred to my son and my descendants.
Dear João,
I hope you will reconsider that conclusions …. that “ADHD just brings downsides.” That’s not it at all. But it does sort of fall into that category of “distorted” thinking common with ADHD — the all-or-nothing, black-white approach. No middle ground. No gray.
ADHD is a complex issue, so to truly appreciate and understand it, we have to bring complex thinking. That’s mostly not to be found online. Or even in many books these days.
I’ve met literally thousands of adults with ADHD. And guess what, not one of them was a clone! :-). They had their own talents, strengths, and challenges. Yes, there were many overlaps but still…no clones.
ADHD is a highly variable syndrome (meaning, symptoms vary in the people who have it). Moreover, it affects individuals, with all the rest of personality to consider.
People often get this idea that because ADHD is genetic (meaning, highly heritable), that it’s all down to 3-5 genes and that only people with ADHD have those genes.
Nothing could be further from the truth. But that line of thinking is great for marketing happy stories about ADHD. Wrong and dishonest, but works well.
It’s easy to pick out the outwardly “successful” folks with ADHD and claim it is a gift. But what about the rest of their life, the issues we don’t see? And what about the estimated 50% of the incarcerated population that have ADHD? Does extolling ADHD as a gift help them? Is it honest? No.
ADHD is a dimensional condition. A dimension of being human. All humans procrastinate. All humans are creative — it’s how we survived. All humans perform better when they are interested in a task. etc.. Much of what is said about the “gifts of ADHD” is basically true for humans as a species.
The difference is that people with the ADHD diagnosis have a greater number of the “human” traits—or have a few to a greater degree than average.
ADHD’s a diagnosis because there are criteria. Specific criteria. And they include impairment in several areas of life.
I find that most people are reasonable about understanding the reality of ADHD once they receive a knowledgeable education.
Perhaps you can think more in terms of what are your unique gifts, as an individual, and then examine how ADHD symptoms might be frustrating you — and explore evidence-based strategies.
That would make you a great role model for any offspring who might also have their own unique presentation of ADHD.
take care
g
We need to keep in mind that Dr Barkley’s perception and understand of ADHD comes from his clinical experience and is highly skewed by people seeking help. Therefor his understanding of it does not speak for people who have created successful lives leveraging their ADHD, it’s problematic for several reasons: it focuses solely on deficits and problems, neglecting the potential strengths associated with ADHD; and it implies that ADHD inevitably leads to negative outcomes, which is not universally true.
ADHD exist on a spectrum and can present differently in different individuals. It is short-sighted to only focus on the population seeking help. Giftedness overlaps with ADHD and ASD in high-functioning individuals. My closest network are those exact individuals, including my husband, myself, our parents and children. While success comes with a growth mindset and knowing how to leverage resources, having a brain that can interconnect variables in a way a neurotypical brain usually can’t, is a certain advantage. I could never buy the label of “mental health disorder” and saw many high-functioning people not seek diagnosis for that reason, only to make the path to success harder as the result but it a way also making us that much more astute and resileint. A big disservice to the community to not be open to the idea that ADHD definitely comes with many benefits.
Usually those of us who are busy succeeding don’t have time to post comments because we are busy working. Today I happen to be putting together a lecture for my children’s school as a request to help the teachers understand ADHD, and find myself here.
I’m afraid you don’t have a full understanding of Barkley’s work.
The diagnosis of ADHD requires impairment, in several areas of life.
Without that, we simply have common human behaviors, falling on a spectrum from mild to strong.
It sounds like you know only a few people with what you might describe as ADHD.
Barkley knows thousands and, more importantly, brings scientific rigor to this study, not vague impressions or personal bias.
It can be hard for teachers to “understand ADHD“ because it is highly complex and highly variable syndrome. Then there’s all the rest of personality.
It is typically more effective to identify your child’s particular challenges and effective strategies.
Good luck with your lecture
G
The principal and teachers requested this because our family is a role model in the community and has come to be trusted, mainly because we take much responsibility for our growth. I’m sorry you misunderstood and projected that there was blame involved.
I agree, I am not that familiar with Dr Barkley’s life work. I prefer Dr. Hallowell – a practicing ADHD psychiatrist and an author of 20+ books who has ADHD himself and is far more rounded out in his understanding of this particular neurodivergence.
My point is that many high-functioning people with ADHD attribute ADHD to their success. I know a few; they should not be ignored even if they challenge the status quo. We need more role models in this community if these kids have a chance at success.
At the end of the day, it’s everyone’s choice to have a fixed or growth mindset and what we do with our God-given traits.
While this is not causality, some parallels exist between ADHD and how a genius brain works:
– Divergent thinking: Both individuals with ADHD and those considered geniuses often exhibit strong divergent thinking skills – the ability to generate many ideas or solutions to a problem.
– Hyperfocus: While people with ADHD struggle with attention in many areas, they can sometimes intensely focus on topics of interest. This is similar to the deep concentration and passion many geniuses exhibit in their fields.
– Cognitive flexibility: Both groups may demonstrate an ability to make unique connections between seemingly unrelated concepts.
– Impulsivity and risk-taking: The impulsivity associated with ADHD can sometimes lead to creative problem-solving. Similarly, many geniuses are known for taking intellectual risks.
– Nonconformity: Both groups may struggle with or reject traditional structures and ways of thinking.
– Heightened sensitivity: Many individuals with ADHD and those considered geniuses report heightened sensory experiences or emotional sensitivity.
– Novelty-seeking behavior: Both groups often display a strong drive for new experiences and ideas.
Working memory issues: While this is typically a challenge for those with ADHD, some theories suggest that reduced information filtering can lead to unique insights.
– Daydreaming and mind-wandering: Often seen as a negative trait in ADHD, this can also be associated with creative ideation in both groups.
However, we do struggle, and that struggle is only magnified by being labeled because we don’t fit into a neurotypical world as well as a neurotypical person.
If anyone besides the moderator reads this, seek out people who will help you grow!
You admit that you aren’t familiar with the work of a preeminent expert, respected internationally. But you are familiar with a popularizer who has published no research.
Seems you can’t really make a comparison.
You are presenting assumptions as if they are fact among ADHD experts. For example, “growth mindsets” are encouraged.
The arguments you’re making have, unfortunately, been trotted for years but not among serious thinkers in the field.
Whatever “some people” do in attributing their success to ADHD is really beside the point. Anecdotes are not data.
Each person is free to pursue whatever avenues they like. But that doesn’t qualify them to speak of anything but their personal experience.
This is why we have research involving tens of thousands of individuals with ADHD. Because it’s a highly variable syndrome, with no traits that are exclusive to ADHD. Yet we can still identify particularly problematic patterns, including around substance-use, driving, health, and relationships, to name just a few.
As the “moderator” and resident Adult ADHD expert, I’ve been helping people “grow” since 2000.
Please know that I grew exhausted from fielding these “genius” and “we struggle only because we’re labeled” arguments for decades now. Smart folks with ADHD are tired of it, too.
g
I’m going to point out condescension and ask you to reflect on why you are so defensive:
Dr Hallowell is an expert by every measure.
I don’t need to be familiar with all of Dr Barkley’s work to disagree. I’m afraid I have to disagree with the article and point out that his research is probably asymmetrical and based a population of people seeking help.
I am smart, objectively, so are others I speak on behalf of and insinuating that I’m not because I don’t hold your view is…well, I will let you decide for yourself what that is.
Complexity I can navigate but of course my own expertise does not lie in the domain of Dr Barkley’s work so while you can probably construct better logical arguments, it is telling that you aren’t willing to examin your own biases in the face of new evidence. Perhaps seek out successful ADHD’ers and have them self-diagnose and attribute, and add that to the sample before drawing conclusions? Perhaps you’ve done that.
I didn’t blame the world (you keep projecting blame – interesting). I said we struggle, it is magnified by having to deal with people, well pretty much like you.
Being dismissive and condescending is very much why the medical industry is losing respect and the paradigm is shifting.
As I said, I was done with these straman-fallacy arguments 15 years ago. My time now goes to more important things.
In point of fact, though, you did blame the world. The labels are the only problem! Those bad ol’ neurotypicals. (A misappropriation of a term used specifically to separate control groups from study groups. In truth, there are no “neurotypicals”. Humans themselves are “neurodiverse.”)
Your words are there, in black and white, for anyone who cares to read.
We are done now.
Yes, I am equally happy they are there in black and white for all to see.
As someone who says she wants to help people, why would you argue with people who are saying “Incorrect labels are problematic. I successed even though it wasn’t easy. Others can too.” and this argument has gone on for 15 years and you’re still arguing?!?
Thankfully is will be my first and last. You carry on helping people
I agree that All of the studies regarding adhd and creativity thusfar have been based on subjective “cognitive test” type bs. But I do not understand why that thereby definitively means Adhd does not bring with it increased creativity,
In the past 5 years or so there have been new scientific ventures into creativity as it relates to brain networking. Such Neurobiological studies strongly suggest a link between increased brain functional connectivity, and creativity, specifically regarding abnormal rates of default mode activity. Both of these have been demonstrated to be A major component of the ADHD brain. So my question is why hasn’t there been studies of that nature in adhd brains or at least a comparative study of MRI imagery of ADHD and Creative brains? My guess is exactly because of the kind of authoritative assertions of an inherent absolute and total superiority of neurotypical brains masquerading as empathy towards people with “seriously disabling” condition, that people like Kaufman make.
The findings thus reveal a wholebrain network associated with high-creative ability comprised of cortical hubs within default, salience, and executive systems—intrinsic
functional networks that tend to work in opposition—suggesting that
highly creative people are characterized by the ability. Have a good day,
Here is a link to one such study
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/321729749_Robust_Prediction_of_Individual_Creative_Ability_from_Brain_Functional_Connectivity
Hi Zoe,
Thanks for your thoughtful comment and the link to an interesting study (I don’t have time to read it closely but I did skim to get the gist of it.)
I think this issue might be clearer if we understand one thing: There is no ADHD brain.
As I mentioned in the piece, this kind of self-serving reductionist thinking serves only one purpose: to draw traffic to websites or to sell by books. By non-ADHD experts claiming expertise.
It is not honest. It’s not helpful. It can mean the difference between a person staying “in denial” and blaming their challenges on “neurotypicals making all the rules…..and…being realistic, self-educated, and self-empowered, targeting those challenges with useful and often evidence-based strategies.
Creativity is a human quality. It manifests in various degrees throughout the human population—as with many other characteristics and qualities, such as impulsivity, distractibility, mood dysregulation, etc.
When an individual has a certain extreme number or manifestation of those traits—and is experiencing impairments in life—that’s where what we call the ADHD syndrome comes in.
A syndrome manifests differently in the individuals who have it. And those individuals also have many other aspects to their personality and neurophysiological makeup.
Moreover, millions of people border on qualifying for the diagnosis, still experiencing ADHD-related challenges to a degree but, at least in the judgment of some, not qualifying for the diagnosis.
ADHD is considered a developmental disability, and there is brain-imaging evidence for this. Whether Mr. Kauffman understands this or not. I know one thing he understands: How to promote himself using contrarian taglines. It always sells in social media, much to the detriment of people with ADHD and public understanding of it.
If I’m reading that study correctly, it suggests that creativity is associated with integrated neural pathways throughout the brain.
As you probably know, with ADHD, the challenge is erratic transmission, to one degree or another, along those neural pathways. Stimulant medication improves communication neuron-to-neuron and throughout the brain. To me, the study (if I’m reading it correctly) sheds light on how people with ADHD might have better access to their innate creativity — if they can just improve the transmission lines.
I’ve heard many people with ADHD say that they are more creative, not less, once taking medication. They are better able to conceptualize, to disregard the ideas worth discarding and follow through on those worth pursuing.
There is no authoritarian conspiracy among scientists to demonstrate the “neurotypical” brain (whatever that is) is superior to the “ADHD” brain (which does not exist). Not that I’ve seen. Remember, many scientists also have ADHD.
When the study subjects are plentiful, scientists will no doubt see a range within them for whatever trait they are researching. They do explain that they tried to recruit with demonstrated creative abilities in mind. That seemed to come first: What brain patterns do we see with higher expressions of creativity.
Thanks for your comment,
Gina
Why is having a neurodevelopmental disorder shameworthy or a gift?
I have a serious genetic neurodevelopmental disoder – I was born male. More of us are born because we die at a higher rate, live shorter lives and are deficient on most social skills. Our group is responsible for the destructionm of most planetary life and almost all the serious damage to the other half of the human race.
I ACCEPT THIS – I DON’T WALLOW IN IT – DENY IT OR TELL MY SELF HOW MUCH FUN IT IS.
I try to find out as much as I can about the condition, look to other examplars of coping, and mitigate my risks. I dont pretend I dont have it, or even consume myself with treating it – I live with it. This doesn’t mean that I minimize the damage that not attending to my condition can do – and I accept full responsibility for the management of my condition – even though no fault of my own.
Dear Dr. V.,
You ask, “Why is having a neurodevelopmental disorder shameworthy or a gift?”
Yes!!!! I could not agree more! Either extreme is intellectually insupportable.
As for the male “disorder” part, my 76-year-old scientist neighbor was trying to convince me of that the other day. “Gina, the human race is through with men. We don’t need them anymore! They’re useless!” [me shaking my head and laughing] “No, Gina, it’s true! Useless! Outlived our usefulness to the species!”
He gets a little carried away. 😉
Personally, I’m rather partial to the other half of the species, warts and all.
Thanks for writing,
g
Thanks for the response.
Paul
I understand Dr. Barkley, and appreciate what he does and says.
It’s hard to hear people, no matter how right they are, to say I am part of a group that has a “serious neurodevelopmental disorder”.
That and the ADHD label, in social and public situations can be useful, in that it can give people a small short glimpse, of part of who I am. But only as far as their understanding and/ or empathy/ compassion go, ie…Who “they” are.
The “write off,” by others, and myself, of the quality and importance of my thoughts, ideas, and expressions as a human being is anything but supportive of creativity.
Though suffering seems to bring out some emotional creativity in me, it’s probably because it hurts so much it gets the mind to work well for awhile.
My long time undiagnosed ADHD has gone a long way in shaping responses to life’s situations. If anything, it caused me to constantly adapt and deal with something I didn’t understand, or have control of, with a “shotgun like try anything” approach.
If failures and persistence with some scattered successes build character, and as a result creativity, then yes I have some additional practiced creativity.
Still, I have always disliked labeling whether it is a group or diagnoses. I feel like I, and others, get lost in a description that seems to neglect who we (individuals) are.
It feels like, too often , the labels envelop rather than describe the cause and effects. I wish there was a better way.
Thanks again Gina. Writing this feels like it helps my creativity and understanding. Mostly for me.
No response needed.
Paul
Thank you for your thoughtful comment, Paul.
You said it best: “I wish there was a better way.”
Today my husband and I joined another couple for a home tour of California-native plants. I met her through my local group for the partners of adults with ADHD. I met her husband through my Adult ADHD group. We all enjoy each other’s company. We drove around the SF Peninsula for 6 hours together in one car.
My husband and her husband share some common ground around ADHD, and they had fun pointing this out to each other in the course of the day. But they are such distinct individuals in every other way that no sane person would think of lumping them into a group of any kind. (Except maybe male.)
And that’s how I see all my friends with ADHD. They share common ground but remain very much their own unique selves.
It annoys the heck out of me to see anyone try to group them as any one thing, especially when it’s done to pander (as it often is).
When you sit in a room for several hours with about 30 adults with ADHD month after month, for years, as I have, you can’t help but be struck by the variability in temperament, occupations, life experience, ADHD-related challenges, etc. ADHD is just a small part of who these people are, but sometimes it has played too big a role by being unrecognized.
Dr. Barkley has been the bulwhark against fuzzy thinking, especially the half-baked studies that purport to show that people with ADHD are more creative. Maybe some well-designed study will indeed show that—and he allows for that possibility—but it hasn’t been done yet. And that is his argument: there is no evidence, so stop making that claim. It can do real harm when muddy research is viewed as equal to the preponderance of well-validated research.
Without the rigor he and other ADHD experts have practiced in their research and writing, ADHD would not exist as a legitimate diagnosis that allows, for example, people who desire it to have schedule 2 substances as medication—and to have it be legal and at least in part paid for by insurance (for some).
Unfortunately, the human brain is mostly lazy. It doesn’t think well in the shades of gray, the nuances; it goes for the blunt categories. Most human brains can’t handle the complicated picture that is ADHD, or what I call Extreme Human Syndrome. 🙂 There is no trait associated with ADHD that is not a basic human trait; it is only a matter of severity and number that makes the difference.
Creativity is a human quality. Maybe people with ADHD in general have “extreme creativity” or maybe they don’t. But this idea of “people with ADHD are creative” and “non-ADHD people are boring Muggles” — well, that is just so stupid it takes my breath away.
Sorry, that was a long response and you said you didn’t need a response. 🙂
thanks for the conversation.
g
Gina this ones for you baby. You say that there is no trait associated with ADHD that isn’t a human trait, Here are just two of the many many, many possible links I could give you to neurobiological studies of the unique structure of the ADHD brain. I seriously suggest you read these and practice a little more validation and a little less projection of internalized insecurity onto the entire community of people with ADHD.
https://adhd-institute.com/burden-of-adhd/aetiology/neurobiology/
https://www.nature.com/articles/pr9201196
Hi Zoe,
I’ll ignore your misguided insults and projections.
Perhaps you want to make someone else your whipping post. I have worked ceaselessly for 20 years to serve the ADHD community, most of it uncompensated.
Perhaps you would like to receive my daily e-mail. Would you have compassion for people who are suffering for lack of proper diagnosis and treatment — instead of misdiagnoses that run the gamut and are therefore harmful or no treatments at all? Including for “giftedness” and “creative.” I’d be glad to forward thousands of them to you and let you respond to them.
How many people do you know who have ADHD? I mean, know personally, not from a blog or Reddit thread. What is the age range? I have met thousands, from age 3 to 90.
How many scientific researchers do you know in the field of ADHD? I personally know dozens. How many published and highly cited papers have you read? I’ve read thousands. How many high-level ADHD scientific conferences and lectures have you attended? I’ve attended dozens.
In fact, I’ve already read the two papers you have provided. And I’m wondering if you read them. Because even as you attempt to use them to slap me about, I’m not sure you understand the methods and conclusions.
There is no “unique structure of the ADHD brain” — except, possibly, in aggregate. That is, large populations of subjects. Not individuals.
ADHD is a “dimensional” condition. There is a range in the human population. There is no black and white cut-off. Moreover, the relatives of people diagnosed with ADHD are more likely to — of course, given high heritability — also have ADHD. But additional relatives also are more likely to have sub-clinical ADHD — that is, not quite pronounced or impairing as to mean a diagnosis. They are on the lower spectrum, in other words, of this dimensional condition.
In my experience, people with ADHD who are over-focused on the marketing lines (“more creative,” etc.) are fearful that they cannot change the behaviors that challenge them. They cling to that as if only “creative” and so forth can define them favorably. They limit their self-concept to simple tropes. As a result, they miss out on a lot in life. The fact that some of them are narcissistic only compounds their problems in life and relationships.
To be sure, the marketing lines are not coming from scientists. They are coming from hustlers who do not mean people with ADHD well.
I have found that it’s more useful to focus on each individual’s ADHD-related challenges with a problem-solving approach. What is holding them back? What causes them grief? Focus on resolving that, and leave the marketing lines to others. Then they can better express whatever gifts and talents they possess as individuals.
take care,
Gina
Whenever I see an article discussing how creative and ‘right-brained’ people with ADHD are, I often wonder if it’s discussing the same disorder that I have. I may indeed be creative, but considering I’ve never finished that novel, that quilt, that painting, that sketch, or any other piece of creative work, ADHD is not exactly something I brag about. The fact is, I haven’t held a job or lived in the same place for more than two years since I was 17 (I’m 37). I’ve attended five different universities and never graduated. If that’s being ‘creative,’ than I’d rather not be.
I hear you, JR. And I’ve heard much the same from my intelligent and creative friends who have ADHD.
It is very rare to encounter this kind of mentality when someone is NOT trying to sell something, or self-promoter. Buyer beware!
Artist and writer Jaclyn Paul, who has ADHD, wrote about the years spent not knowing she has ADHD, and the cost to creativity. It is part a review of my book. http://www.jaclynpaul.com/mtsarchive/?p=1019
As a man who has been married to a creative woman with ADHD for over twenty years I appreciate Dr. Barkley’s rebuttal to the article lauding the ADHD-creativity connection. Making good art is a challenge under the best of circumstances and no amount of ‘gift’ in the artistic way is any help balancing a checkbook, remembering to service the car or succeeding at a career.
The more I read about Dr. Barkley, the more I want to run up to him, give him a huge hug, and say “Thaaaaank you for everything!” Of course, that would be impulsive & socially inappropriate, so I won’t do that.” 🙂
Haha! Dotty, I feel the same way. And I bet he’d love that impulsive hug. Try it the next time you see him. 😉
Gina