Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Adult ADHD: A Case Study of Multi-Method Assessment of Executive Functioning in Clinical Practice and Manualized Treatment Adaptation

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a developmental disorder that regularly persists into adulthood and is associated with a number of maladaptive functional outcomes. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is an empirically based treatment that has demonstrated effects on core ADHD symptoms and related impairments in adult samples. One manualized CBT in particular is proposed to target both core symptoms of ADHD and underlying executive functioning (EF) deficits. Targeting underlying dysfunction is important to ongoing treatment development efforts and may enhance efficacy. This manualized CBT was developed for groups. The aims of this case study were twofold. First, we adapted a manualized group-based CBT for adult ADHD for an individual format. Second, we discuss a case study to exemplify how clinicians can measure and track EF symptoms in a clinic setting using a multi-method approach. Self-report and collateral-report questionnaire data provided initial support for adaptation of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Adult ADHD: Targeting Executive Dysfunction to an individual format. Outcome data were more limited with cognitive test scores. The discrepancy between questionnaire and cognitive test data along with the complications observed at 2-month follow up are discussed.