The evolution of hyperactivity, impulsivity and cognitive diversity

Williams, Jonathan; Taylor, Eric

doi:10.1098/rsif.2005.0102

Cited by 98 publications

(80 citation statements)

References 130 publications

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“…Two of these articles report results from genetic studies (23,31), and one reports a computational simulation study (32) The 7R was associated with ADHD in a meta-analysis of candidate gene studies (33), but the odds ratio was low (only 1.3). Furthermore, DRD4 has not yet been implicated by genome-wide association studies (34) and current thinking is that ADHD susceptibility is influenced by many common and rare variants (9).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Empirical tests of natural selection-based evolutionary accounts of ADHD: a systematic review

Thagaard

Faraone

Sonuga‐Barke

et al. 2016

Acta Neuropsychiatr.

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(248 words)Objective: ADHD is a prevalent and highly heritable mental disorder associated with significant impairment, morbidity and increased rates of mortality. This combination of high prevalence and high morbidity/mortality seen in ADHD and other mental disorders presents a challenge to naturalselection-based models of human evolution. Several hypotheses have been proposed in an attempt to resolve this apparent paradox. The aim of this study was to review the evidence for these hypotheses. Methods:We conducted a systematic review of the literature on empirical investigations of naturalselection-based evolutionary accounts for ADHD in adherence with the PRISMA guideline. The PubMed, Embase, and PsycINFO databases were screened for relevant publications, by combining search terms covering evolution/selection with search terms covering ADHD. Results:The search identified 790 records. Of these, 15 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility, and three were included in the review. Two of these reported on the evolution of the seven-repeat allele of the ADHD-associated dopamine receptor D4 gene, and one reported on the results of a simulation study of the effect of suggested ADHD-traits on group survival. The authors of the three studies interpreted their findings as favoring the notion that ADHD-traits may have been associated with increased fitness during human evolution. However, we argue that none of the three studies really tap into the core ADHD phenotype, and that their conclusions therefore lack validity for ADHD. Conclusions:This review indicates that the natural-selection-based hypotheses for ADHD have not been subjected to empirical test and therefore remain entirely speculative. Keywords:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity; Biological Evolution; Selection, genetic; Adaptation, Biological. 3 Summations-The search conducted for our systematic review of empirical investigations of natural-selectionbased evolutionary accounts for ADHD identified 790 records. Of these, 15 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility, and only three were included in the review.-The authors of the three studies included in this review interpreted their findings as favoring the notion that ADHD-traits may have been associated with increased fitness during human evolution. However, we argue that none of the three studies really tap into the core ADHD phenotype, and that their conclusions therefore lack validity for ADHD.-This review indicates that the natural-selection-based hypotheses for ADHD have not been subjected to empirical test and therefore remain entirely speculative. We suggest that this gap in knowledge should be addressed in future studies. Considerations-Publications relevant for this topic may have gone undetected in our search.-It is noteworthy that there are more publications raising hypotheses for the evolutionary background for ADHD than there are studies testing them empirically.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Empirical tests of natural selection-based evolutionary accounts of ADHD: a systematic review

Thagaard

Faraone

Sonuga‐Barke

et al. 2016

Acta Neuropsychiatr.

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“…To be clear while it has been 150 years since Darwin in his works suggested the possibility of a survival gene ('Sympatin' gene) it is proposed herein that the gene referred to be Darwin could be related to the DRD2 A1 allele. However this polymorphism (rs1800497) resides in the ANKK1 gene which interacts with the biological activity of DRD2 receptor [11][12][13] (also seehttp://www.ncbi.nlm. nih.gov/SNP/snp_ref.cgi?rs=1800497).…”

Section: Mapping Survival--like Behaviours and Dopaminergic Activitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Over 150 years later, this hypothesis is that the 'Sympatin' gene maybe the Taq AI allele a variant of the dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) gene. In genetic studies the Taq AI allele a variation has been associated with a number of survival-like behaviours [11,12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hypothesizing Molecular Genetics of the Holocaust: Were Dopaminergic Genes Involved or Brain Wash?

Blum

Atzmon

Baron

et al. 2016

SOJP

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“…Specially, Williams and Taylor state that, "we have suggested two advantages of ADHD-HI to society: first, increased exploration of behavioral possibilities and second, the confining of concomitant social and physical risk to a minority" (p. 408). 24 Although some studies have indicated that there is no significant difference in creativity between those with ADHD and those without ADHD, 25 it is our suggestion that more research must be done to investigate this phenomenon specifically among the engineering students with ADHD. The present study attempts to discover a similar trend by using the Brown ADD Scales for Adults and Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT) Figural Form A.…”

Section: Creative Potential Of Individuals With Adhd Characteristicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unique Potential and Challenges of Students with ADHD in Engineering Programs

Zaghi¹,

Reis²,

Renzulli³

et al.

2016 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

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A critical need exists in engineering education to draw on the non-traditional divergent thinking and risk-taking necessary for making radical technological breakthroughs. Literature suggests that individuals with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) characteristics demonstrate unparalleled creativity and risk-taking potential. While this group of students may offer significant benefits to the advancement of the nation, they are currently significantly underrepresented in engineering programs because of the major academic and emotional challenges that the rigidly structured engineering programs impose on them. Funded by the Division of Engineering Education and Centers of the National Science Foundation, this study is aimed at understanding creative potential and challenges of engineering students with ADHD characteristics. A cohort of 18 female and 36 male undergraduate students were recruited from the School of Engineering at the University of Connecticut (n=54). To quantify the level of ADHD-related characteristics and the creative potential of the participants, the investigators administered Brown ADD Scales for Adults and Torrance Test of Creative Thinking (TTCT) Figural Form A, respectively. A 40-question instrument was designed and administered to understand the learning styles, the perception of current engineering programs in terms of rewarding creativity and risk-taking, and the difficulties of the participants in engineering programs. It was found that there is a statistically significant positive correlation between the Brown total score and the Creativity Index (r = .45, p = .001). Among Brown subscale scores, attention was found to have the largest correlation with the Creativity Index. There were positive significant correlations with the Creativity Index and all of the Brown subscales except for memory. The Brown scores were found to have positive significant correlations with three of the TTCT sub-categories; fluency, originality, and resistance to premature closure. A negative correlation exists between the GPA and total Brown score, suggesting weaker academic accomplishments of students with ADHD characteristics. GPA showed no correlation with the Creativity Index, suggesting a lack of creativity appreciation in current engineering programs. The Mann-Whitney test on survey questions revealed that students with a higher Brown t-score are significantly more willing to take a chance in which they may fail in order to pursue innovation. This study found that only three of the eighteen students who are formally diagnosed with ADHD are receiving services from the Center of Students with Disabilities CSD. It is expected that the outcomes of this study lead to a paradigm shift in how these individuals are perceived by both our society and our engineering educational system. The knowledge generated through this study will help identifying the academic struggles of this group of students and facilitate development of specialized education programs that foster largely unrecognized tale...

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The evolution of hyperactivity, impulsivity and cognitive diversity

Cited by 98 publications

References 130 publications

Empirical tests of natural selection-based evolutionary accounts of ADHD: a systematic review

Empirical tests of natural selection-based evolutionary accounts of ADHD: a systematic review

Hypothesizing Molecular Genetics of the Holocaust: Were Dopaminergic Genes Involved or Brain Wash?

Unique Potential and Challenges of Students with ADHD in Engineering Programs

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