Falsberg, L. L. (2024). From deficit to difference: A heuristic inquiry on positive aspects of ADHD [Unpublished Master’s thesis]. Alef Trust & Liverpool John Moores University.
Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is commonly considered a chronic, neurodevelopmental disorder, approached and treated with a focus on its deficits. My personal experience of its positive aspects, along with noticing how these were un(der)represented in research and psychoeducation, gave rise to this heuristic inquiry where I together with seven co-researchers explored how individuals diagnosed with ADHD experience the positive/beneficial qualities of their neurodivergence, to foster deeper understanding, empowerment and aid destigmatisation of the condition. Co-researchers shared various positive aspects of their ADHD, conveyed thematically as creative and holistic cognition, socio-affective attunement and adaptability, and dynamically driven, adept actionability. These were experienced within a greater context of ADHD as a double-edged sword. While the majority reported an inability to express/experience the condition’s positive aspects at the time of their diagnoses, they all mentioned engaging psychoeducation which led them towards greater self-understanding and self-acceptance. Through a combined effort of constructively re-narrating self-images following their diagnoses, and their conception of ADHD from one of deficit to difference, supported by intentional nurture of these differences, positive aspects of the condition became apparent. I argue that this study’s findings, and its relation to other findings on ADHD-positives, posits rational, empirical and ethical imperative for approaching our investigation and social conception of the condition and its treatment through a lens of neurodiversity rather than pathology, as this can be done without neglecting the disabling aspects of ADHD, and is likely to benefit, not only neurodivergent individuals, but also the collective.
