Adult ADHD in Motion: Workplace Physical Activity and Improved Occupational Outcomes for Adults With ADHD

Abstract

This correlational study was designed to investigate the goodness of fit of varying occupations dependent on their activity level for adults with ADHD. Previous research surrounding physical activity and ADHD has suggested that physical activity may help increase the management of cognitive symptoms associated with this disorder in children however this research has not been extended into the adult ADHD population. To address the existing gap in research, this study examined whether permitted or required occupational physical activity influenced three specific occupational outcomes for adults with ADHD: wage loss, job satisfaction and number of job changes. It was hypothesized that adults diagnosed with ADHD who are employed in physical occupations would report (1) hourly wages closer to the national average for their specific occupation, (2) greater job satisfaction and (3) fewer job changes in the previous five years than adults with ADHD employed in sedentary jobs. Participants were recruited online through Amazon Mechanical Turk and were required to be over the age of 25, employed full-time and a resident of the United States. All potential participants first completed an online survey which included the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale Screener to identify individuals who likely met the diagnostic criteria for adult ADHD. These identified individuals were then granted access to the online study survey which included a measure of job satisfaction and demographic questions (i.e. age, gender, ethnicity, highest level of education, current hourly wage, current occupation, number of job changes over the past five years and whether or not they have a current diagnosis of a psychological disorder other than ADHD). The results indicated that adults with ADHD experience less wage loss when employed in a physical versus sedentary occupation. There was no significant difference in job satisfaction or number of job changes in the last five years between the physical and sedentary occupational categories. The findings of this study provide preliminary evidence that the child research on movement and the management of cognitive symptoms extends into the adult population.