We investigated the self-perceptions of college students with ADHD while on and off medication. Students were given various working memory and questionnaire tests both on and off their medication without the tester knowing their medication status. While medications did not affect underlying attention or self-perceptions, students described themselves as more symptomatic off medication than on medication. Additionally, when describing themselves generally, students focused more on their off-medication experiences rather than on-medication experiences, which could lead to overprescription of ADHD medications.

1. Working Memory Measures:
• Digit Span Test: participants hear increasingly longer
sequences of single digit numbers and recite them in same
(forward) or reverse (backward) order
• Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test: participants hear single
digit numbers (presented at a 3 second or 2 second rate), add
adjacent digits together, and report the sum
• Spatial Span Test: participants watch the examiner tap blocks
in increasingly longer sequences and then tap the blocks in the
same (forward) or reverse (backwards) order
• N-Back Test: participants view letters on screen and inform
examiner whenever letter is same as the one that came just
before it (1-back), two before it (2-back), or three before it (3-
back)
Questionnaires:
• Conner’s Adults ADHD Rating Scale (CAARS): standardized
questionnaire with 66 items assessing hyperactivity, inattention,
emotional lability, and self-concept
• Internal Restlessness Scale: questionnaire assessing internal
restlessness taken two times, once with participants thinking of
themselves on their medication and once with participants
thinking of themselves off of their medication
Me? Or Meds? Subjective Symptoms in Medicated and Unmedicated Adults with ADHD
• Inconsistent with our hypothesis, medication did not affect either
attention or self-perceptions of college students with ADHD.
• ADHD students described themselves as significantly more
symptomatic off-medication than on-medication.
• When describing themselves generally, these students focused on
their off-medication symptomatology rather than on-medication
symptomatology which may risk over prescription of ADHD medication.
• Students may overestimate the effectiveness of their medications for
improving working memory and other symptoms of ADHD.
Procedure
Abstract
Summary and Conclusions
Results
Jhovana Cervantes, Alexandra Gabor, Tara T. Lineweaver, & Suneeta Kercood
Background
• ADHD is associated with working memory deficits
(Dowson et al., 2004; Sawnson & Lee, 2001).
• Working Memory is the capacity to simultaneously store
and manipulate information and is necessary for higher
cognitive tasks especially in the presence of distractions
(Baddeley, 1986; Baddeley, 2003; Shallice, 1988).
• ADHD poses difficulty for 4%- 11% of college students
(DuPaul et al., 2001; Weyandt et al., 1995).
• Two types of working memory are often affected by
ADHD: auditory working memory and visual working
memory.
• Participants randomly assigned to medication condition
• All testing completed during morning sessions
• Tester unaware of medication status at the time of testing
Method
Participants:
Working Memory CAARS IRS
To analyze the differences in working memory and self-
perceptions of students with ADHD while on and off
medications
Purpose
1. Students with ADHD will have better perceptions of
themselves and perform better on neuropsychological tests
while on medication than while off medication.
2. Stronger relationships will emerge between students‘ off-
medication self-ratings and their general self-perceptions than
between their on-medication self-ratings and their general self-
perceptions.
3. Stronger relationships will emerge between students’ working
memory and their on-medication self-perceptions than
between their working memory and their off-medication self-
perceptions if they were on medications at the time of their
session.
Hypotheses
We investigated the self-perceptions of college
students with ADHD while on and off medication.
Medications did not affect either underlying attention or
self-perceptions, but students did describe themselves
as more symptomatic off medication than on
medication. Additionally, when students described
themselves generally, they seemed to focus on their
off-medication symptomatology.
No Medication Group Medication Group
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
Digit Span PASAT Spatial Span N-Back Inattention Hyperactivity Emotional
Lability
Self-Concept IRS-On IRS-Off
No Medication
Group
(n=20)
Medication
Group
(n=19)
Age 19.85 (1.42) 19.58 (1.35)
Education 2.00 (1.3) 2.16 (1.26)
Gender (% Female) 72.7% 55.6%
Age at ADHD Diagnosis 14.78 (4.81) 14.97 (3.76)
K-BIT Verbal IQ 105.58 (8.16) 107.37 (8.69)
K-BIT Non-Verbal IQ 101.89 (9.27) 105.74(9.36)
Outcome Measure
IRS-Off IRS-On
R2
F df pβ p β p
Full Sample
ADHD Index 0.234 <.001 0.09 0.15 0.54 20.84 2,36 <.001
Inattention 0.17 0.08 0.06 0.63 0.14 3.09 2,36 .058
Hyperactivity 0.22 .02 0.00 1.00 0.19 4.26 2,36 .02
Emotional Lability 0.25 <.001 0.22 .01 0.56 23.33 2,36 <.001
Self-Concept 0.13 0.14 0.28 .01 0.35 9.76 2,36 <.001
No -Medication Group
ADHD Index 0.25 .005 0.16 0.18 0.45 7.81 2,17 .004
Medication Group
ADHD Index 0.22 .008 0.08 0.34 0.63 13.79 2,16 <.001
Outcome
ADHD Index
β p
IRS-Off
β p
IRS-On
β p R2
F df p
Full Sample
PASAT 0.01 0.99 -0.42 0.06 0.24 0.26 0.16 1.98 3,35 0.14
S Span -0.10 0.23 0.02 0.57 -0.034 0.27 0.13 1.67 3,35 0.19
D Span 0.06 0.65 0.49 0.52 0.07 0.16 0.13 1.67 3,35 0.19
N-Back -0.12 0.37 -0.08 0.90 0.36 0.49 0.04 0.51 3,35 0.68
No Medication Group
PASAT 0.19 0.68 -0.60 0.005 -0.91 0.42 0.53 5.92 3,16 0.01
S Span 0.01 0.95 -0.03 0.41 -0.63 0.16 0.22 1.51 3,16 0.25
D Span 0.16 0.3 -0.06 0.34 -0.05 0.55 0.08 0.49 3,16 0.70
N-Back -0.09 0.53 -0.05 0.37 -0.08 0.27 0.31 2.35 3,16 0.11
Medication Group
PASAT 0.13 0.91 -0.37 0.40 0.34 0.40 0.07 0.37 3,15 0.78
S Span -0.23 0.16 0.07 0.24 -0.04 0.50 0.13 1.19 3,15 0.35
D Span -0.03 0.90 -0.03 0.73 0.12 0.11 0.20 1.27 3,15 0.32
N-Back -0.07 0.81 -0.001 0.99 0.06 0.52 0.04 0.19 3,15 0.90
Relationships Amongst Self-Perceptions Measures
Self-Perceptions and Working Memory
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