Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Evolution Of Adhd: A Disorder Of Communication?, Joan C. Stevenson, Don C. Williams, Jessica Baird

Anthropology Faculty and Staff Publications

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most commonly diagnosed psychiatric condition. Many believe that the central disability is impaired inhibition, which leads to reduced abilities in social skills, self-control, organization and time management. The behaviors identified by clinicians as problematic-inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity-have been incorporated into several evolutionary models as selectively adaptive cognitive skills for surviving the challenges of a variable Pleistocene environment. We propose that the "disabilities" exhibited by individuals with ADHD are maladaptive, and we concur with Barkley that there is a central impairment in the behavioral inhibition system. The underlying neural anatomy and physiology support the …