To fake or not to fake ADHD?
Apparently, it is easy to fake ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder and get prescribed Adderall only by spending 5 minutes on Google and reading the symptoms. For those of you not familiar with ADHD, it is characterized by disorganization, lack of focus, having a hard time paying attention, easily distracted, impulsivity, impatience, etc. Hence, most people diagnosed with ADHD get prescribed with stimulant medication, most often Adderall. This stimulant is supposed to help the individual focus their attention on a specific task and manage to counteract the loss of focus and distraction. They have more educational and financial resources such as more time for a test, reduced workload, and additional teaching/tutoring. Now, it is easy to see why people would want to fake the symptoms and get a prescription. For someone who does not have it, it would be a serious advantage over others. They are more focused on their work than usual and get extra resources, so what’s the big deal?
As a side note, I remember reading an article a couple of years ago in the Dawson College newspaper about an interview with an anonymous student from Concordia. He claimed to have a full-time course load and worked something like 30–40 hours/week. He said he took Adderall only when doing schoolwork and not recreationally. He also said there is no way a normal person could sit for 5 hours per night and study for exams while writing a couple of essays and getting all As and A minuses, but at the same time still working so many shifts. He said he didn’t have the time to manage his school and his work, therefore, he took the liberty to “help” himself.
But continuing on with the topic at hand, a recent study was published using 3 experimental groups and 1 control group. The experimental groups were ADHD individuals on medication, ADHD off their medication and non-ADHD individuals who were supposed to fake symptoms. The non-ADHD students were told they would receive a compensation of $45 if they managed to be diagnosed with ADHD. The control group was naturally non-ADHD non-faking individuals.
The diagnosis is two-part. First, there is a self-report followed by a neuropsychological test. In the self-report, ADHD individuals or those who are faking report symptoms that are along the lines of those I mentioned above. What perplexed me the most about the results was that there was no differentiation between the neuropsychological tests of true AHDH individuals and normal individuals who were not faking (control group).
If it is considered a neuropsychological disorder, why are there no brain differences between different individuals?
I do understand the need to abuse stimulant medication due to extenuating circumstances or the personal goal to get a 4.0 GPA, however, I find it unfair to everyone else. It is a shame to fake an illness or condition just to get advantages that wouldn’t have been received otherwise and I find it unfair to the ADHD community that actually deal with this condition and do need their pills to help them study in order to get a decent grade on an exam. I also find it unfair for the rest of the students that study hard and do their best even if they come up short sometimes. Just like banned substances at the Olympics that may enhance an athlete’s performance, I think there should be a list of banned substances at universities for healthy individuals with no physical and/or psychological conditions.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mouse-man/201007/new-study-claims-it-is-easy-fake-adhd
