An Examination of the Specificity of Motivation and Executive Functioning in ADHD Symptom-Clusters in Adolescence

Objective Motivation and executive functioning are central to the etiology of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Furthermore, it has been hypothesized that motivation should show specificity of association with ADHD-impulsivity/hyperactivity symptoms, whereas executive functioning should show specificity of association with ADHD-inattention symptoms. This study tests this specificity-hypothesis and extends previous research by conceptualizing motivation to include both reactivity to reward and punishment. Methods Executive functioning was assessed using two different laboratory measures (the Wisconsin-Card-Sort and Stop-Signal Tasks) and motivation was measured using a laboratory measure of sensitivity to reward and punishment (the Point-Scoring-Reaction-Time Task). Results Findings suggested specificity of association between executive functioning and symptoms of inattention, and between motivation and symptoms of impulsivity/hyperactivity. However, support varied across indices of executive functioning. Conclusions Results provide support for multiple component models of ADHD symptoms and extend the literature by providing a theoretically based conceptualization of motivation grounded on developmental neuroscience models of motivated behavior.