Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, impulsivity, and low self-control: which is most useful in understanding and preventing offending?

Religiosity as a moderator of ADHD-related antisocial behaviour and emotional distress among secular, religious and Ultra-Orthodox Jews in Israel

BACKGROUND

ADHD predicts higher levels of antisocial behaviour and distress while religiosity is related to lower levels of both. This raises the hitherto unexplored question of how these variables interact.

AIMS

The objective of this study was to explore how religious individuals with ADHD fare in terms of these psychosocial outcomes.

METHOD

806 secular, religious and Ultra-Orthodox Jewish adults in Israel completed measures of ADHD symptoms and treatment, emotional strengths and difficulties, religious belonging, religious behaviour and antisocial behaviour.

RESULTS

Findings supported an additive-interactive model in which religiosity (a) correlates with lower levels of ADHD symptoms and diagnosis, (b) directly relates to less antisocial behaviour and less distress and (c) moderates the negative effects of ADHD on antisocial behaviour and distress. Findings further suggest that religious observance rather than religious belonging drives most of the moderating effect of religiosity, while religious belonging rather than religious observance drives negative attitudes towards ADHD.

CONCLUSIONS

Implications include the importance of treating religious individuals with ADHD in a more nuanced manner and of providing more information on ADHD to religious communities.

Individual differences, ADHD, adult pathological demand avoidance, and delinquency

BACKGROUND

Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) is a developmental disorder involving challenging behaviour clinically linked to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Many of the problematic features of PDA are often seen in persons with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and impulsivity. ADHD and impulsivity are also common in the backgrounds of offenders.

AIMS

Method and procedure: We examined if self-reported ASD, ADHD, impulsivity, and general personality traits such as low conscientiousness and low emotional stability predicted self-reported PDA scores, and which constructs contributed to the prediction of delinquency, recruiting 132 participants (mean age 34.6 years, SD = 10.9, range 18-68), of whom 126 cases had complete data.

OUTCOMES AND RESULTS

Many of these constructs, but particularly ADHD (r = 0.71, p < 0.001) were significant correlates of PDA, the correlation between ASD and PDA was small, and did not predict PDA. Multiple regression indicated that a combination of higher attention deficit, antagonism, and lower emotional stability predicted 65 % of an individual's PDA score, but that their PDA score did not contribute to the prediction of delinquency.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

This research indicates that, for community adult populations, self-reported individual differences in ADHD, emotional instability, and antagonism appear to better predict PDA than ASD. The association PDA has with delinquency may reflect these constructs, which are also correlates of offending.