Event Segmentation Deficits in ADHD

Event segmentation is the automatic cognitive process of chunking ongoing information into meaningful events. Event segmentation theory (EST) proposes that event segmentation is a grouping process fundamental to normal, everyday perceptual processing, taking a central role in attention and action control. The neurocognitive deficits observed among individuals with ADHD overlap those involved in event segmentation, but to date no research has examined event segmentation in the context of ADHD. Objective: The goal of this study was to document the event segmentation deficits of individuals with ADHD. Method: Seventy-five undergraduates with ADHD and seventy-nine without ADHD performed an event segmentation task. Results: Results revealed that undergraduates with ADHD identify significantly more large events. Conclusion: These findingssuggest explicit disturbances in the event model and updating system among those with ADHD. Future research directions include further elucidating these deficits with more varied stimuli and establishing associations with functional impairments.