"Boys Will Be Boys": The Delayed Onset of ADHD Diagnoses For Women

Prior research on Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has focused largely on males, and young boys in particular. Why? Early research assumed that only young boys exhibited hyperactivity symptoms; therefore, the definition was tailored to match only their behaviors. More recently, research has extended ADHD diagnosis to include adults. Still, women who presented with inattentive symptoms were overlooked for many years. The purpose of this study is to explore ADHD diagnoses in women, and more specifically, the delayed onset of ADHD diagnoses for women. Using a mixed-methods survey, I compare and contrast the demographics, symptoms, timing of diagnosis, stigma, and social media influence on gendered experiences of being diagnosed, undiagnosed, or misdiagnosed with ADHD. The results show that 58% of participants were diagnosed in adulthood, inattentive and combined presentations were most common, masking was a dominant theme for women when they were younger, and social media has strongly increased the awareness of ADHD in women. These findings emphasize the necessity of more gender-sensitive evaluation tools/resources to help education professionals recognize the signs and symptoms and to highlight the extent to which informed social media influences the public. Overall, ADHD in women continues to go underdiagnosed due to social norms and expectations, masking, and diagnostic biases.