Exploring how adolescents with ADHD use and interact with technology

The ubiquity of technology is reshaping the way teens express themselves and interact with peers. Considering that teens with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience a range of social impairments and that risk behaviors have the potential to be more widespread and damaging online, understanding how teens with ADHD use the Internet is important.

The current study included 58 teens (72.4% boys; 13-16 years old) from the United States of America with ADHD. Study aims were to examine these teens' Internet use frequency, preferred online activities, Facebook interactions, and online risk behaviors (i.e., cyberbullying and sexting). Associations between online behaviors and offline symptoms and behaviors were explored to identify potential risk and protective factors.

Findings suggested that teens with ADHD use technology in similar ways as do the general population of teens described in previous research but appeared at unique risk of cyberbullying behaviors. Offline risks were associated with online risk behaviors. Using Facebook was associated with online risks (e.g., weak online connections) and offline risks (e.g., poorer social skills and more internalizing symptoms).

Online social platforms permit the exploration of social behaviors via naturalistic observation. It is imperative researchers gain understanding of the increasingly prevalent online social worlds of teens. Such an understanding may enable researchers to formulate effective social interventions for teens with ADHD.