Interoceptive abilities in adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Area of Science:

• Neurodevelopmental Disorders
• Psychophysiology
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity.
• Adult ADHD symptoms can include predominantly inattentive presentations, impacting both external and internal attentional processes.
• Interoception, the processing of internal sensory information, is a potential area of impairment in ADHD that requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess and compare interoceptive abilities between adults with and without ADHD.
• To examine differences in behavioral accuracy, confidence ratings, and interoceptive insight using psychophysiological measures.
• To evaluate self-reported interoceptive accuracy and attention in individuals with and without ADHD.

Main Methods:

• A cohort of 57 typically developed adults and 30 adults with ADHD diagnosis participated.
• Interoceptive abilities were assessed using behavioral measures (heartbeat counting task) and self-report questionnaires.
• Psychophysiological measurements, confidence ratings, and questionnaire data were analyzed using ANCOVA, controlling for confounding variables.

Main Results:

• Individuals with ADHD exhibited significantly lower behavioral accuracy, confidence ratings, and self-report accuracy compared to controls.
• These differences persisted after controlling for ethnicity, age, autistic traits, alexithymia, depression, and social functioning.
• Ethnicity, age, and depression also demonstrated significant effects on specific interoceptive abilities.

Conclusions:

• Interoceptive impairment may be a characteristic feature of ADHD, independent of several confounding factors.
• The findings suggest a potential link between ADHD and difficulties in perceiving internal bodily states.
• Further research with larger, diverse samples and varied methodologies is recommended to confirm these interoceptive differences in ADHD.