Are attentional-hyperactivity deficits unidimensional or multidimensional syndromes? Empirical findings from a community survey

J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 1992 May;31(3):423-31. doi: 10.1097/00004583-199205000-00007.

Abstract

Factor analysis on teacher ratings of symptoms in a probability community sample of children aged 6 to 16 years (N = 614) yielded two factors: Inattention and Hyperactivity-Impulsivity. Subsequent cluster analyses on the scores of factorially derived scales for a subsample of 170 children with a diagnosis of attention deficit disorder with (ADDH) and without hyperactivity (ADDWO), or normals, resulted in five clusters that accounted for 88% of the variance. The existence of these clusters was confirmed using external validating criteria. The data support a bidimensional conceptualization of attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity, one dimension consisting of symptoms of inattention and another of symptoms of hyperactivity-impulsivity. The data also suggests that a condition very similar to the DSM-III-R description of undifferentiated attention-deficit disorder also exists as a distinct entity.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / classification
  • Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / diagnosis*
  • Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / epidemiology
  • Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / psychology
  • Attention*
  • Child
  • Child, Preschool
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Incidence
  • Male
  • Motor Activity*
  • Psychiatric Status Rating Scales*
  • Puerto Rico / epidemiology