The ‘symptoms checklist’ (ASRS-v1.1) is typically used to initially identify ADHD in adults. For some people, a score only just into the ADHD criteria can be confusing but may highlight issues with the questionnaire itself.
For adults this questionnaire may be seriously limited because:
👉Hyperactivity and impulsivity become less apparent with age and more internalised which isn’t addressed
👉Often the questions elicit a “yes but” answer for many ADHDers
👉Doesn’t take into account the variability of the interest based nervous system. Individuals can show exceptional focus for long periods of time (hyper focus) when interest is sparked, whilst can struggle immensely when it’s not
👉It lacks consideration of adult masking abilities and their development of coping strategies
👉And it definitely doesn’t include strengths!
Therefore, it’s no surprise that ADHD identification is so challenging.
⏰Time for an update?
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Here is the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS-v1.1) Symptom Checklist along with some good discussion on reliability and validity from Dr Engelbrecht:
📝https://embrace-autism.com/asrs-v1-1/
And here is a very useful questionnaire on masking:
🎭https://embrace-autism.com/cat-q/
For those who find they get a score only just indicating the presence of ADHD, this questionnaire can help to indicate why.
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