title: Driving and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
abstract: Adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) suffer from various impairments of cognitive, emotional and social functioning, which can have considerable consequences for many areas of daily living. One of those areas is driving a vehicle. Driving is an important activity of everyday life and requires an efficient interplay between multiple cognitive, perceptual, and motor skills. In the present study, a selective review of the literature on driving-related difficulties associated with ADHD is performed, seeking to answer whether individuals with ADHD show increased levels of unsafe driving behaviours, which cognitive (dys)functions of individuals with ADHD are related to driving difficulty, and whether pharmacological treatment significantly improves the driving behaviour of individuals with ADHD. The available research provides convincing evidence that individuals with ADHD have different and more adverse driving outcomes than individuals without the condition. However, it appears that not all individuals with ADHD are affected uniformly. Despite various cognitive functions being related with driving difficulties, these functions do not appear helpful in detecting high risk drivers with ADHD, nor in predicting driving outcomes in individuals with ADHD, since impairments in these functions are defining criteria for the diagnoses of ADHD (e.g., inattention and impulsivity). Pharmacological treatment of ADHD, in particular stimulant drug treatment, appears to be beneficial to the driving difficulties experienced by individuals with ADHD. However, additional research is needed, in particular further studies that address the numerous methodological weaknesses of many of the previous studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical and Developmental Neuropsychology, University of Groningen, Grote Kruisstraat 2/1, 9712 TS, Groningen, The Netherlands. a.b.m.fuermaier@rug.nl.
authors.forename: Anselm B M
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Fuermaier
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical and Developmental Neuropsychology, University of Groningen, Grote Kruisstraat 2/1, 9712 TS, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Lara
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tucha
authors.affiliation: Traffic and Environmental Psychology Group, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Ben Lewis
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Evans
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical and Developmental Neuropsychology, University of Groningen, Grote Kruisstraat 2/1, 9712 TS, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Janneke
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Koerts
authors.affiliation: Traffic and Environmental Psychology Group, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Dick
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: de Waard
authors.affiliation: Traffic and Environmental Psychology Group, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Karel
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Brookhuis
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology and Neuropsychology, SRH Clinic Karlsbad-Langensteinbach, Karlsbad-Langensteinbach, Germany.
authors.forename: Steffen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aschenbrenner
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Rostock, Rostock, Germany.
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Thome
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Klaus W
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Lange
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical and Developmental Neuropsychology, University of Groningen, Grote Kruisstraat 2/1, 9712 TS, Groningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Oliver
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Tucha
mesh_terms: D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology; D001334:Automobile Driving; D006801:Humans
keywords: ADHD; Accidents; Adulthood; Driving; Mobility; Speeding; Traffic