Graduation Year

2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Degree Name

Doctor in Psychology (Psy. D.)

Abstract

Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most diagnosed disorders in adults and children, yet there is no standardized method to assess for ADHD. The similarity of symptoms shared across other disorders (comorbidity) makes the assessment of ADHD a very delicate process. This is not aided by the fact that the assessment of ADHD is not standardized. This allows individuals able to assess for ADHD to give a test or a combination of tests that they find fitting. This in turn brings into question the quality of testing and disagreement in diagnosing across fields. Lastly, ADHD-focused measures typically fail to address the overlap in symptoms with other disorders, which can help assist clinicians with differential diagnoses. The question then becomes, how does one attempt to standardize ADHD testing while providing testing that shows adequate clinical validity in both the diagnosis of ADHD and differential diagnosing? This paper aims to produce insight into the complications of ADHD diagnosis and suggest a solution to current testing, in the form of an assessment battery.

Faculty Mentor

Michael McCllellan, PhD

Department Affiliation

Psychology

Committee Member

Jerry Palmer, Phd

Department Affiliation

Psychology

Committee Member

Brett Smith

Department Affiliation

Psychology

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