Kr. Murphy et al., Executive functioning and olfactory identification in young adults with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, NEUROPSYCHL, 15(2), 2001, pp. 211-220
Young adults with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; N = 105)
were compared with a control group (N = 64) on 14 measures of executive fun
ction and olfactory identification using a 2 (group) X 2 (sex) design. The
ADHD group performed significantly worse on 11 measures. No Group X Sex int
eraction was found on any measures. No differences were found in the ADHD g
roup as a function of ADHD subtype or comorbid oppositional defiant disorde
r. Comorbid depression influenced the results of only I test (Digit Symbol)
. After IQ was controlled for, some group differences in verbal working mem
ory, attention, and odor identification were no longer significant, whereas
those in inhibition, interference control, nonverbal working memory, and o
ther facets of attention remained so. Executive function deficits found in
childhood ADHD exist in young adults with ADHD and are largely not influenc
ed by comorbidity but may be partly a function of low intelligence.