Attention deficit disorder screening test


Do I Have ADHD? Take Our ADHD Quiz to Screen for Symptoms

Who Is This ADHD Quiz For?

This simple assessment is for adults who think they may have symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Below is a list of questions that relate to life experiences common among people who have been diagnosed with ADD/ADHD. Please read each question carefully, and indicate how often you have experienced the same or similar challenges in the past few months.

How Accurate Is It?

This quiz is NOT a diagnostic tool. Mental health disorders can only be diagnosed by qualified mental health professionals.

Psycom believes assessments can be a valuable first step toward getting treatment. All too often people stop short of seeking help out of fear their concerns aren't legitimate or severe enough to warrant professional intervention.

How Is ADHD Treated?

Treatment for adult ADHD typically involves medication, psychotherapy, and/or psychoeducation. There is no cure for ADHD, but a combination of these treatments can effectively reduce symptoms and improve work and home life.

Your privacy is important to us. All results are completely anonymous.

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ADHD FAQs

I thought ADHD was only in kids. How many adults have ADHD?

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD is primarily diagnosed in children ages 4–17 but according to the National Institute of Mental Health, an estimated 4.4% of adults aged 18-44 have ADHD. ADHD is a neurological disorder present from birth and has a strong genetic component. If your symptoms are being caused by ADHD, they may have been present but not noticed in childhood. Many parents of children with ADHD are diagnosed when their child starts to struggle at school and are referred to a specialist.

Is ADHD a mental illness?

ADHD is a neurological condition. While it technically falls under the umbrella of mental illnesses most practitioners see it as a behavior disorder rather than a mental illness. ADHD is associated with behavior problems caused by working memory and executive functioning deficits (i.e. the ability to plan and be organized). It also commonly co-occurs with mental illnesses including bipolar disorder, social anxiety disorder, substance use disorder, and learning disabilities. Another term that is gaining acceptance that may more accurately describe ADHD is neurodiversity. Neurodiversity is a term that describes people who think and learn differently.

What is ADD behavior?

Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) is one of the three subtypes of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and is no longer an acceptable acronym (in the clinical sense). Today it is referred to as ADHD predominantly inattentive type. While it has many overlapping symptoms, ADHD predominantly inattentive type lacks the hyperactivity piece but includes distractibility, impulsivity, trouble focusing (unless it’s something you find very interesting), and executive functioning challenges, meaning you have trouble planning, following instructions, and being organized.

Is it possible to have a successful life when you have ADHD?

Absolutely. Many people with ADHD thrive and often it’s because of (not despite) their ADHD symptoms. People with ADHD in business are known to be strategic, outside-the-box thinkers who have an enviable ability to handle many different tasks. People with ADHD are often very creative and have a unique ability to make connections others fail to see. Celebrities like swimmer Michael Phelps, Will Smith, Justin Timberlake, Emma Watson, and Zooey Deschanel all have ADHD.

Is ADHD something you can develop as an adult?

No, if you are experiencing symptoms of ADHD as an adult you had it in childhood and either found ways to work around your difficulties or had mild enough symptoms they were overlooked. This is especially true in women/girls females who often manifest their symptoms by turning inward and keeping their problems hidden. They also typically lack the hyperactive component. It's important to note that depression, anxiety, and some mood disorder can resemble ADHD so it's important to rule out those causes of your symptoms. Research shows that ADHD is largely hereditary so if you have a child diagnosed with ADHD, you or the child’s father may have it as well. Untreated ADHD can strain relationships and contribute to other challenges so if you suspect you have ADHD seek the guidance of a licensed mental health care provider.

How accurate is this ADHD quiz and what do I do with the results?

This online assessment is not a diagnostic tool. Only a licensed mental health provider or doctor can properly diagnose ADHD. You can use the results of this ADHD test as a way to start a conversation with a partner, relative, therapist, or medical doctor.

Who can diagnosis ADHD?

ADHD cannot be diagnosed by a blood test. Share your symptoms with your doctor who can conduct a physical exam, review your medical history, and rule out other causes of your symptoms. You may be referred to an ADHD specialist for further testing after an initial consultation with your doctor.

What if I do not have insurance and/or can't afford a doctor to diagnose and treat me for ADHD?

Research has shown that interacting with others that share similar challenges can be a helpful source of knowledge, camaraderie, and effective coping strategies. Connect with support groups online through reputable organizations like CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) and NAMI (the National Alliance on Mental Illness). Apps can also be a helpful tool. Many are designed to help you cope with related anxiety, stress, insomnia, and organizational challenges. For a list of mental health apps visit https://www.psycom.net/25-best-mental-health-apps

Notes: This article was originally published December 30, 2021 and most recently updated June 28, 2022.

Barton Herskovitz, MDBoard-certified Psychiatrist

Barton S. Herskovitz, MD, is a board-certified psychiatrist who practices in Newton and Needham, Massachusetts. For more than 30 years, he has specialized in helping families of ADHD and oppositional children. He’s run many groups for parents of children with ADHD, for children, teens, and adults who have ADHD, as well as workshops for siblings. He also recently used his experience and expertise to release his first book, The ADHD Sibling Challenge: How to Thrive When Your Brother or Sister Has ADHD (ISBN: 978- 1733832830, March 2020).

Medical Testing, Scales, & Psychological Criteria

Written by WebMD Editorial Contributors

In this Article

  • What Doctors Look For
  • Brain Wave Tests
  • From Diagnosis to Treatment

There's no single test to diagnose ADHD. Instead, doctors rely on several things, including:

  • Interviews with the parents, relatives, teachers, or other adults
  • Personally watching the child or adult
  • Questionnaires or rating scales that measure symptoms of ADHD
  • Psychological tests

The doctor needs to see how much a person’s symptoms are affecting their daily moods, behavior, productivity, and lifestyle habits. And they need to rule out other conditions.

With children, the doctor will talk with the parents about ADHD symptoms they have seen. The doctor will want to know what age the behaviors began and where and when the child shows symptoms. The doctor may ask for a behavior report from the child's teacher, report cards, and samples of schoolwork.

With adults, the doctor may want to talk with a spouse or other family members. They'll want to find out if the patient had symptoms in childhood. Knowing if an adult had ADHD behavior as a child is important for making a diagnosis.

To rule out other conditions, a doctor may ask for tests, including:

  • Hearing and eyesight
  • A blood test for lead levels
  • A blood test for diseases such as thyroid disease
  • A test to measure electrical activity in the brain
  • A CT scan or MRI to check for brain abnormalities

 

What Doctors Look For

To diagnose ADHD, doctors most often use guidelines established by the American Psychiatric Association. The group has identified 3 types of the disorder:

1. Inattentive Type: A person must have at least 6 out of these 9 symptoms, and few symptoms of hyperactive-impulsive type:

  • Doesn't pay attention to detail or makes careless mistakes
  • Doesn't stay on task
  • Doesn’t listen
  • Doesn’t follow instructions or finish schoolwork or chores
  • Trouble organizing tasks or activities
  • Avoids or dislikes doing things that take effort or concentration
  • Loses things
  • Easily distracted
  • Forgetful

2. Hyperactive-Impulsive Type: A person must have at least 6 out these 9 symptoms, and few symptoms of inattentive type:

  • Fidgets or squirms a lot
  • Gets up from their seat a lot
  • Runs or climbs at inappropriate times
  • Has trouble playing quietly
  • Always “on the go” as if “driven by a motor"
  • Talks excessively
  • Blurts an answer before the question has been completed
  • Trouble waiting their turn
  • Interrupts others

3. Combined Type. This is the most common type of ADHD. People with it have symptoms of both inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity.

Along with these APA guidelines, doctors may also use rating scales to help them evaluate and track ADHD symptoms. A few examples are:

  • The Vanderbilt Assessment Scale. This 55-question assessment tool reviews symptoms of ADHD. It also looks for other conditions such as conduct disorder, oppositional-defiant disorder, anxiety, and depression.
  • The Child Attention Profile (CAP). This scale is generally filled out by teachers and tracks common ADHD symptoms.
  • Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC). This test looks for things like hyperactivity, aggression, and conduct problems. It also looks for anxiety, depression, attention and learning problems, and lack of certain essential skills.
  • Child Behavior Checklist/Teacher Report Form (CBCL). Among other things, this scale looks at physical complaints, aggressive or delinquent behavior, and withdrawal.
  • Conners Rating Scale. This is a questionnaire that asks about things like behavior, work or schoolwork, and social life. They can show how these symptoms affect things like grades, job, home life, and relationships.

Brain Wave Tests

The Neuropsychiatric EEG-Based Assessment Aid (NEBA) System is a scan that measures brain waves. The ratio of certain brain waves tends to be higher in children and adolescents with ADHD. The scan is approved for use in children ages 6 to 17, but is meant to be used as a part of a complete medical and psychological exam.

Other tests help diagnose other medical conditions that mimic ADHD. But they don’t diagnose ADHD.

From Diagnosis to Treatment

If the doctor makes an ADHD diagnosis, it's important to follow the treatment. The doctor may recommend medications and behavioral therapy. These treatments can bring relief from the symptoms and make ADHD easier to manage.

ADHD symptom test

The ADHD test includes many different symptoms that in one way or another indicate the presence of this mental disorder. However, the severity of the disease and its symptoms can vary greatly.

This test incorporates the results of previous studies to ensure the validity and reliability of the results for identifying symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Do you have symptoms of ADHD? For each following statement, indicate how much you agree with it.

The ADHD test (IDR-ADHDST) is owned by IDRlabs. It builds on the work of Dr. Lenard Adler and colleagues who created the ADHD Questionnaire (ASRS). This test is not affiliated with any particular researcher or organization in the field of psychopathology.

The ADHD symptom test is based on material that has been published in the following sources: Kessler RC, Adler L, Ames M, Demler O, Faraone S, Hiripi E, Howes MJ, Jin R, Secnik K, Spencer T, Ustun TB , Walters EE. The World Health Organization Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS): a short screening scale for use in the general population. Psychol Med. 2005 Feb;35(2):245-56. doi:10.1017/s0033291704002892. PMID: 15841682; Adler LA, Spencer T, Faraone SV, Kessler RC, Howes MJ, Biederman J, Secnik K. Validity of pilot Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) to Rate Adult ADHD symptoms. Ann Clin Psychiatry. 2006 Jul-Sep;18(3):145-8. doi: 10.1080/10401230600801077. PMID: 16923651; Adler, L., Faraone, S., Sarocco, P. , Atkins, N., Khachatryan, A. (2018). Establishing US norms for the adult ADHD self-report scale and characterizing symptom burden among adults with self-reported ADHD. The International Journal of Clinical Practice.

The work of Dr. Adler and colleagues looks at the main symptoms of ADHD. This work also describes certain diagnostic criteria that are intended for clinical use by trained mental health professionals. This test provides information for educational purposes only. IDRlabs and this test are in no way affiliated with the above researchers, organizations or institutions.

The ADHD symptom test is based on known research on the condition and other psychiatric disorders. However, all free online tests like this one are only introductory materials that will not be able to determine your inherent qualities with absolute accuracy and reliability. Therefore, our test provides information for educational purposes only. Detailed information about your mental state can only be provided by a certified specialist.

As the authors of this free online ADHD symptom ratio test, we have made every effort to ensure that this test is reliable and valid through numerous validations and statistical data controls. However, free online tests like this provide information "as is" and should not be construed as providing professional or certified advice of any kind. For more information about our online tests, please see our Terms of Service.

ADD(H) test for adults

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Adult ADHD Test

Test for ADD(H) for adolescents and adults 17 years of age and older, inclusive, in accordance with the methodology of the American DSM-V guide.

Number of questions: 18 .

For more information, see the article from the Notes.

...

To answer "Yes", the symptom must be:

- Stable during the last 6 months .

- Was expressed in measure not corresponding to the level of development .

- Had a negative impact on academic performance and/or professional activities .

...

The test is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose any disease.

Consult a doctor for diagnosis.

...

1

Often makes nervous movements with hands or feet, or fidgets and wriggles while sitting in a chair.

Yes

No

2

Often interrupts or annoys others.

For example, breaks into conversation, games or activities without invitation; can use other people's things without asking; for teenagers or adults - they can interfere with someone else's work or continue someone else's work themselves.

Yes

No

3

Often has difficulty waiting in line.

For example, in the shop or at the game.

Yes

No

4

Often blurts out an answer before the question has been fully asked.

For example, completes sentences when others are speaking; cannot wait for their turn to join the conversation.

Yes

No

5

Often too talkative.

Yes

No

6

It is often in constant motion and behaves as if a motor was attached to it.

For example, absolutely unable or unable to stay comfortably in one place in restaurants or meetings; perhaps people around him consider him a restless person or a person with whom it is difficult to deal with.

Yes

No

7

Often has difficulty playing or spending leisure time quietly.

Yes

No

8

Often runs back and forth without restraint or climbs in situations where this is unacceptable.

Note: Teenagers and adults may not be running, jumping or climbing but may be restless and out of sorts.

Yes

No

9

Often leaves his seat in class or in other situations where the person is expected to be seated.

For example, leaving one's seat in a classroom, in an office or other place of work, or in other situations where one is expected to be seated.

Yes

No

10

Often fails to pay due attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork, work, and other activities.

For example, does not notice or skips details, the work is not done accurately.

Yes

No

eleven

Often forgetful in daily activities.

For example, forgetfulness in housework, while doing errands; for older teenagers and adults - they forget to return calls, pay bills, come to a meeting or appointment (to a doctor, for example).

Yes

No

12

Often easily distracted by extraneous stimuli. For older teenagers and adults, this also includes thoughts that are inappropriate for the time / place.

Yes

No

13

Often loses things needed for lessons or classes.

For example, notebooks, textbooks, pencils, books, tools, keys, paper forms, glasses, mobile phones.

Yes

No

14

Often avoids, dislikes, or reluctantly takes on things that require sustained mental effort.

For example, schoolwork or school homework, for older teens and adults - preparing reports, filling out forms, studying long texts.

Yes

No

15

Often has difficulty organizing lessons and classes.

For example, trouble moving from one task in a chain to another, difficulty keeping materials and personal belongings in order, sloppy, unorganized work, poor time management, failing to complete work on time.

Yes

No

16

Often does not follow instructions to the end and does not complete class work, chores, or duties in the workplace.

For example, starts work, but quickly loses focus and easily wanders off topic.

Yes

No

17

Often it seems that he does not listen to the speech addressed to him.

For example, his mind wanders somewhere else, even if there is no obvious distraction.

Yes

No

18

Often has difficulty maintaining attention when performing tasks or during games.


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