ADHD Questions
Why do people with ADHD struggle at work?
Charles Li, MD
May 15, 2023
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ADHD often lasts into adulthood, affecting our work and everyday lives.
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Studies have shown that those with more difficulty with executive function also have more difficulty with their careers.
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ADHD can affect how we think and process information, even among highly intelligent individuals.
ADHD is most commonly recognized at and associated with school. Teachers and parents often first notice ADHD when children struggle with schoolwork.
However, ADHD often continues on into adulthood.
ADHD that persists into adulthood often comes with additional issues in the workforce.
Many of these issues are driven by difficulties with executive function, the higher level thought processes in your brain:
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Many clinicians mistakenly continue to
think of this as a behavior disorder characterized
by hyperactivity in children and excessive restlessness or impulsivity in adults. In fact, ADD/ADHD
is essentially a cognitive disorder, a developmental
impairment of executive functions (EFs), the self management system of the brain.
The effect of ADHD on executive function can affect more than just schoolwork. It’s been shown to extend into our work and our everyday lives:
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Although EFs are
complex, their impairment constitutes a syndrome
that can be recognized readily in clinical practice;
impaired EF involves a pattern of chronic difficulties in executing a wide variety of daily tasks.
How does ADHD affect job performance
Studies on ADHD and job performance have found that those with ADHD and challenges with their executive function tend to have significantly more difficulties at work.
Those who had trouble inhibiting themselves held fewer jobs and had more trouble with behavior on the job.
A study on executive function, ADHD, and employment outcomes, found that those with poor inhibition held fewer jobs, had more trouble with behavior, and quit more jobs due to hostility.
Those with difficulty with self-motivation, another aspect of executive function that those with ADHD can struggle with, were fired from and quit more jobs.
A study found that those with the most trouble with self-motivation were also more bored at work and had the most issues with job performance.
Difficulty with time management is associated with more behavior and performance issues on the job.
A study found that those with the most difficulty managing time had the most behavior issues and lowest employer-rates performance.
ADHD and IQ at work
ADHD can affect individuals at all levels of IQ. Even highly intelligent individuals can have ADHD and struggle with cognitive shortcomings from ADHD.
One study found that highly intelligent children with ADHD still had severe difficulties with how fast they processed information and their working memory:
Executive function impairments in high IQ children and adolescents with ADHD
Studies have shown that intelligence can compensate for some of the symptoms of ADHD:
However, even those with high IQ and ADHD can continue to struggle with the effects of ADHD: