ADHD and Giftedness? - Learning Lab

ADHD and Giftedness?

20 APRIL 2016 | DR. ALICIA VICTORY, PSY. D. 


We receive more questions about and requests for assessments for ADHD than for any other issue. Often, our assessments reveal that the child is, in fact, not ADHD but is gifted — or is both ADHD and gifted. I cannot stress enough the importance of a formal assessment to determine the true cause of what might be happening academically, as self-report rating scales and collateral report rating scales do not give the full picture of the individual.

ADHD and giftedness may look alike in the following ways:

  • Daydreaming and little attention unless very intereste
  • Low tolerance for tasks that seem irrelevant
  • High activity level with little need for sleep
  • Emotional intensity and power struggles
  • Questioning rules and restrictions

How often do parents hear from a teacher that their child is not concentrating in class, does not seem to be paying attention and generally seems uninterested in academics. While this description resembles ADHD in the classroom, it could be that the child is gifted and is not attending to the information provided in class. Sometimes these children feel that they do not have to pay attention because they already know what is being taught. They have essentially “checked out.” Such children may be misdiagnosed as ADHD, when in fact they are not. Or it could be that they are ADHD and gifted, magnifying the symptoms of both.

When working with children, it is essential to find out as much information as possible in order to make an accurate diagnosis (if warranted), but more importantly to give recommendations that are useful and helpful to the child specifically. A full evaluation should assess a child’s IQ, processing speed, working memory, academic achievement, attention, sustained attention, and should include collateral information. Without all of the pieces of the puzzle there is no way to fully understand the overall picture. And it is critical to know and understand the differences, the way that ADHD and giftedness can mimic one another, and insure that the diagnosis is accurate before moving forward with treatment or changes at school.