The short form adult attention deficit/hyperactivity self-report scale is a useful diagnostic measure
Q Do the long and short forms of the attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) self-report scale effectively diagnose ADHD in adults?
METHODS
Design:
Prospective diagnostic cohort study.
Setting:
General population, USA; interviews conducted 2001–03.
Patients:
154 people aged 18–44 years who participated in the US National Comorbidity Survey Replication study. Participants were selected from four groups: those reporting no childhood ADHD symptoms; those reporting some childhood ADHD symptoms, but not meeting diagnostic criteria; those meeting childhood ADHD diagnostic criteria but no current symptoms; and those meeting childhood ADHD diagnostic criteria and having current symptoms.
Test:
The adult ADHD self-report scale (ASRS) includes 18 items based on DSM-IV Criterion A symptoms of adult ADHD. Each item asks how frequently a symptom occurred in the preceding six months rated on a four-point scale (0 = never to 4 = very often). The optimal method for scoring each symptom as present or absent was developed by selecting a cutoff that resulted in the least difference between the false positive and false negative rate for that item. The optimal method for scoring the ASRS was …
