This work provides a shift of perspective on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), arguing that the disorder is fundamentally a developmental problem of self-control, and that a deficit of attention is a secondary, and not universal, characteristic. The volume synthesizes neuropsychological research and theory on the executive functions, illuminating how normally functioning individuals are able to bring behavior under the control of time and orient their actions toward the future. Applying this model to an examination of the cognitive and social impairments manifested by ADHD, Barkley offers new directions for thinking about and treating this disorder.

The book reviews the diagnostic criteria of ADHD, identifying the inadequacies of current conceptualizations, and presents a range of new and testable hypotheses about the nature of the disorder. Shifting the focus of ADHD theory building away from inattention per se, Barkley delves into the vital construction of behavioral inhibition. Chapters draw upon extensive neuropsychological research to show how the ability to delay one's response to external stimuli permits the development of the executive functions involved in self-control. The book demonstrates how ADHD disrupts the developmental process by which behavior becomes internalized, resulting in an inability to regulate and direct behavior toward the future.

Contents:
(Abbreviated).
The nature of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
Biological etiologies associated with ADHD.
Defining behavioral inhibition, self-control, and executive function.
Behavioral inhibition and ADHD.
Neuropsychological views of the executive functions: The origins of a hybrid model.
Additional evidence supporting the existence of the executive functions.
Constructing the hybrid model of executive functions.
Developmental considerations: Self-control as an instinct.
Extending the hybrid model of executive functions to ADHD.
Evidence supporting executive function deficits in ADHD.
Understanding ADHD and self-control: Social and clinical implications.
References.
Index.