ADHD diagnoses are rising. 1 in 9 U.S. kids have gotten one, new study finds
npr.org
npr.org
It was pretty common knowledge in high school and university that getting a diagnosis was an easy way to get all sorts of testing benefits, including on tests like the SAT.
Some kids have shorter attention spans than others. Where does one draw the line between “personality” and “disorder”?
Across the area that those that studied psychiatric medicine tell it to?
It's not about "some kids having shorter attention spans than other" any more than Alzheimers is "some people forget more than others I don't see the big deal".
Are you even aware of the impact ADHD can have on a person's life (persons, not "kids" alone, it's not some disease people grow out of)? Including (among the day to day impact) worse socio-economic outcomes, worse health outcomes, and significantly shorter life spans?
Except if dying younger is also "legitimized cheating" (sic). Perhaps people with ADHD do it to get a leg up on the competition.
https://www.thecarlatreport.com/articles/3096-reduced-life-e...
"Left untreated, ADHD can raise the risk of serious health concerns in adulthood. This includes a higher risk of diabetes, heart disease and shortened life span... which is why increased awareness and diagnosis is important."
But even if there was a confounding factor they miss, and "mere correlation", those problem will still be more present on people having ADHD (since they are statistically increased compared to the general population). The idea of ADHD as a fake illness and "they're just cheating" doesn't explain such outcomes.
Not to mention it's ignorant, with just media stereotypes about ADHD from 2+ decades ago to go on. ADHD is not just about "shorter attention spans" anymore that autistic people are like the Rain Man or Sheldon from BBT.
There are warning signs, students who are regressing, who are being failed (often by being passed) by their teachers and schools who don't have the processes or resources to identify and divert them. They're primarily male, and until they're out of that school system, they don't often have a chance to discover who they are in a context free from conflict, stress, and failure.
I wouldn't call it feminization because it comes down to the support the superintendents have from above and below for testing and support, but it's certainly a combination of lies in aggregate, leftovers from zero tolerance and NCLB, and expansions of duties without sufficient resources. The teachers know and feel it, but they can't help everyone when the schools are being run in a way that prioritizes the highest volume of students completing their "sentence" over caring about individual competency and development.
"The increase in diagnoses also comes amid growing awareness of ADHD — and the different ways that it can manifest in children. Danielson says that may help explain why girls are becoming more commonly diagnosed with ADHD compared to boys than they had been in the past. She says boys have long been diagnosed with ADHD at around two and half times the rate of girls, but the new reports finds that difference is narrowing."