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. 2022 Sep;28(8):810-820.
doi: 10.1017/S1355617721001065. Epub 2021 Sep 7.

Reduced Error Recognition Explains Post-Error Slowing Differences among Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Anne B Arnett  1 , Candace Rhoads  2 , Tara M Rutter  3   4
Affiliations

Reduced Error Recognition Explains Post-Error Slowing Differences among Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Anne B Arnett et al. J Int Neuropsychol Soc. 2022 Sep.

Abstract

Objective: Youth with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often show reduced post-error slowing (PES) compared to typically developing controls. This finding has been interpreted as evidence that children with ADHD have error recognition and adaptive control impairments. However, several studies report mixed results regarding PES differences in ADHD, and among healthy controls, there is considerable debate about the cognitive-behavioral origin of PES.

Methods: We tested competing hypotheses aimed at clarifying whether reduced PES in children with ADHD is due to impaired error detection, deficits in adaptive control, and/or attention orienting to novelty. Children aged 7-11 years with a diagnosis of ADHD (n = 74) and controls (n = 30) completed four laboratory-based computer tasks with variable cognitive loads and error types.

Results: ADHD diagnosis was associated with shorter PES only on a task with high cognitive load and low error-cuing, consistent with impaired error recognition. In contrast, there was no evidence of impaired adaptive control or heightened novelty orienting among children with ADHD.

Conclusions: The cognitive-behavioral origin of PES is multifactorial, but reduced PES among children with an ADHD diagnosis is due to impaired error recognition during cognitively demanding tasks. Behavioral interventions that scaffold error recognition may facilitate improved performance among children with ADHD.

Keywords: ADHD; Adaptive control; Attention orienting; Error monitoring; Executive functions; Post-novelty slowing.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Reduced PES among ADHD participants as compared to controls was significantly more pronounced during the Hard ERP task.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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