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Executive Functioning Heterogeneity in Pediatric ADHD

Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology volume 47, pages 273–286 (2019)Cite this article

Abstract

Neurocognitive heterogeneity is increasingly recognized as a valid phenomenon in ADHD, with most estimates suggesting that executive dysfunction is present in only about 33%–50% of these children. However, recent critiques question the veracity of these estimates because our understanding of executive functioning in ADHD is based, in large part, on data from single tasks developed to detect gross neurological impairment rather than the specific executive processes hypothesized to underlie the ADHD phenotype. The current study is the first to comprehensively assess heterogeneity in all three primary executive functions in ADHD using a criterion battery that includes multiple tests per construct (working memory, inhibitory control, set shifting). Children ages 8–13 (M = 10.37, SD = 1.39) with and without ADHD (N = 136; 64 girls; 62% Caucasian/Non-Hispanic) completed a counterbalanced series of executive function tests. Accounting for task unreliability, results indicated significantly improved sensitivity and specificity relative to prior estimates, with 89% of children with ADHD demonstrating objectively-defined impairment on at least one executive function (62% impaired working memory, 27% impaired inhibitory control, 38% impaired set shifting; 54% impaired on one executive function, 35% impaired on two or all three executive functions). Children with working memory deficits showed higher parent- and teacher-reported ADHD inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive symptoms (BF10 = 5.23 × 104), and were slightly younger (BF10 = 11.35) than children without working memory deficits. Children with vs. without set shifting or inhibitory control deficits did not differ on ADHD symptoms, age, gender, IQ, SES, or medication status. Taken together, these findings confirm that ADHD is characterized by neurocognitive heterogeneity, while suggesting that contemporary, cognitively-informed criteria may provide improved precision for identifying a smaller number of neuropsychologically-impaired subtypes than previously described.

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Fig. 1

Notes

  1. As recommended in the K-SADS, oppositional defiant disorder was diagnosed clinically only with evidence of multi-informant/multi-setting symptoms. ODD comorbidity is 48% in the ADHD group and 16% in the Non-ADHD group based on parent-reported symptom counts.

  2. Stop-signal reaction time (SSRT) was also computed for each task block due to current debate in the literature regarding the optimal metric for estimating inhibitory control from the stop-signal task. When substituted for SSD, these SSRT variables failed to load with the inhibitory control variables from the go/no-go task when factor analyzed (loadings = 0.06–0.28), and were therefore excluded from further analysis.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported in part by an NIH grant (R34 MH102499-01, PI: Kofler). The sponsor had no role in design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; or preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Florida State University, 1107 W. Call Street, Tallahassee, FL, 32306-4301, USA

    Michael J. Kofler, Lauren N. Irwin, Elia F. Soto, Nicole B. Groves & Sherelle L. Harmon

  2. Departments of Pediatrics and Psychiatry, Center for Advancement of Youth, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA

    Dustin E. Sarver

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  1. Michael J. Kofler
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Kofler, M.J., Irwin, L.N., Soto, E.F. et al. Executive Functioning Heterogeneity in Pediatric ADHD. J Abnorm Child Psychol 47, 273–286 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-018-0438-2

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Keywords

  • ADHD
  • Executive function
  • Working memory
  • Inhibition
  • Shifting
  • Heterogeneity