Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Aug;28(10):1392-1405.
doi: 10.1177/10870547241259329. Epub 2024 Jun 12.

Associations of Symptoms of ADHD and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) in Adolescence With Occupational Outcomes and Incomes in Adulthood

Sampo Seppä  1 , Sanna Huikari  2 , Marko Korhonen  2 , Tanja Nordström  3 , Tuula Hurtig  1   4 , Anu-Helmi Halt  1   5
Affiliations

Associations of Symptoms of ADHD and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) in Adolescence With Occupational Outcomes and Incomes in Adulthood

Sampo Seppä et al. J Atten Disord. 2024 Aug.

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the associations of ADHD and ODD symptoms in adolescence with occupational outcomes and incomes in adulthood within the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986 (NFBC1986).

Method: ADHD symptoms were evaluated at ages 15 to 16 years using the Strengths and Weaknesses of ADHD symptoms and Normal Behaviors (SWAN) scale. ODD symptoms were assessed using a 7-point scale, like the SWAN assessment.

Results: Symptoms of ADHD and ADHD + ODD were associated with elevated rates of unemployment, increased sick days, and lower annual incomes compared to controls for both sexes. Symptoms of ODD were associated with higher unemployment and more sick days for males, although these associations did not reach statistical significance in their association with annual incomes.

Conclusion: Symptoms of ADHD were associated with adverse occupational outcomes and lower incomes. Furthermore, symptoms of ODD were associated with occupational outcomes but not with incomes.

Keywords: ADHD; SWAN; occupational outcome; oppositional defiant disorder.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

References

    1. Ahlberg R., Du Rietz E., Ahnemark E., Andersson L. M., Werner-Kiechle T., Lichtenstein P., Larsson H., Garcia-Argibay M. (2023). Real-life instability in ADHD from young to middle adulthood: A nationwide register-based study of social and occupational problems. BMC Psychiatry, 23(1), 336. 10.1186/s12888-023-04713-z - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Alatupa S., Pulkki-Råback L., Hintsanen M., Elovainio M., Mullola S., Keltikangas-Järvinen L. (2013). Disruptive behavior in childhood and socioeconomic position in adulthood: A prospective study over 27 years. International Journal of Public Health, 58(2), 247–256. 10.1007/s00038-012-0408-3 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Altszuler A. R., Page T. F., Gnagy E. M., Coxe S., Arrieta A., Molina B. S. G., Pelham W. E. (2016). Financial dependence of young adults with childhood ADHD. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 44(6), 1217–1229. 10.1007/s10802-015-0093-9 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.).
    1. American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.).

LinkOut - more resources