title: Allocentric but not egocentric visual memory difficulties in adults with ADHD may represent cognitive inefficiency.
abstract: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has often been conceptualized as arising executive dysfunctions (e.g., inattention, defective inhibition). However, recent studies suggested that cognitive inefficiency may underlie many ADHD symptoms, according to reaction time and processing speed abnormalities. This study explored whether a non-timed measure of cognitive inefficiency would also be abnormal. A sample of 23 ADHD subjects was compared to 23 controls on a test that included both egocentric and allocentric visual memory subtests. A factor analysis was used to determine which cognitive variables contributed to allocentric visual memory. The ADHD sample performed significantly lower on the allocentric but not egocentric conditions. Allocentric visual memory was not associated with timed, working memory, visual perception, or mental rotation variables. This paper concluded by discussing how these results supported a cognitive inefficiency explanation for some ADHD symptoms, and discussed future research directions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06519, USA. Electronic address: franklin.brown@yale.edu.
authors.forename: Franklin C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH 03756, USA.
authors.forename: Robert M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Roth
authors.affiliation: Lynda J. Katz, Ph.D. & Associates, Durham, NC 27707, USA.
authors.forename: Lynda J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Katz
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D008570:Memory, Short-Term / Q000502:physiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Allocentric; Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder; Cognitive efficiency; Neuropsychological assessment; Visual memory