Cognitive control in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Abstract

Deficits in cognitive control have long been put forward as the cognitive core of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Neuropsychological and neuroimaging studies have confirmed that cognitive control is impaired in ADHD at the group level. However, it has become clear that it is not universally affected in ADHD and that other cognitive functions are also affected, including some that may be more basic. Impulsiveness, impulse control, behavioural inhibition, executive functioning, and cognitive control are all terms that are often used near-interchangeably in the clinical, neuropsychological, and neuroscience literature on ADHD. This is problematic as it confuses behavioural symptoms and the underlying cognitive processes, and thereby confounds cause and consequence. Cognitive control and associated differences in brain activation form the endophenotype that has perhaps been most often put forward for ADHD. Psychostimulant medication is a common treatment option for moderate to severe cases of ADHD and is often effective.