CBT for Adult ADHD: Adaptations and Hypothesized Mechanisms of Change

Abstract

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) was formerly thought to be exclusively a disorder of childhood. However, research has indicated that a majority of individuals diagnosed with ADHD will continue to exhibit clinical significant symptoms in adulthood. Many other individuals may not have their symptoms recognized and diagnosed until facing difficulties in adulthood. Medications are the most effective single treatment for individuals with ADHD of all ages. However, medications alone may represent insufficient treatment for many adults with ADHD. Consequently, various adjunctive treatments for adult ADHD have been developed, with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) emerging as a particularly promising one. The goal of this article is to discuss how CBT has been adapted in light of the prevailing model of dysfunction for ADHD and to propose hypothesized mechanisms of change that may produce the positive therapeutic changes obtained in clinical outcome studies.