Young Girls Diagnosed with ADHD Tend to Have Social, Academic Problems in Adolescence

One of the few long-term studies devoted to following girls with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder shows that girls with the diagnosis tend to have psychiatric and social problems in adolescence, including substance abuse, eating disorders, social problems with peers, and poor academic performance.

“The chief conclusion is that ADHD in girls portends continuing problems that are of substantial magnitude,” concludes the report, published in the June issue of the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, a publication of the American Psychological Association. The lead researcher was Stephen P. Hinshaw, the chairman of the psychology department at the University of California, Berkeley, and a longtime researcher in the field...