Could ADHD have evolved because it makes us better explorers?
Embargoed until:
Publicly released:
2024-02-21 11:01
People with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be more likely to take a risk and explore new options, according to US and Indian scientists, which may make them better foragers, and possibly explorers, than people without ADHD. That advantage could potentially explain why the condition evolved and persisted, they say. The researchers set up an online foraging task that gave 457 participants a choice between collecting food from a single bush, or travelling to pastures new in search of greater rewards. They also screened participants for ADHD, and found people who screened positive for the condition were more likely than the others to ditch the lone bush and strike out in search of new opportunities, meaning they ended up with more food at the end of the task.
Journal/conference: Proceedings of the Royal Society B
Research: Paper
Organisation/s: University of Pennsylvania, USA
Funder: The Wharton Behavioural Lab provided support
in setting up and running the study. We are grateful to Emily
M. Orengo and Richard Lee for their assistance during this project.
The research was supported by R37-MH109728, R01-MH108627,
R01-MH-118203, KA2019-105548, U01MH121260, UM1MH130981,
R56MH122819, R56AG071023 (all to MLP), the Wharton Behavioural
Lab and the Wharton Dean’s Research Fund (to VUL and MLP).
Media release
From: The Royal Society
ADHD explorers - Attention Deficits Linked with Proclivity to Explore while Foraging
Summary: Humans often forage for resources, choosing when to explore for new opportunities. Nomadic lifestyles favoring exploration are associated with genetic mutations implicated in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), inviting the hypothesis that this condition may impact foraging decisions. Here we tested this hypothesis by having human participants collect resources in a foraging task and then complete an ADHD self-report screening assessment. Participants who screened positive for ADHD departed resources sooner and earned higher reward rates than those who screened negative. Our findings suggest that ADHD attributes confer advantages while foraging, suggesting that this condition is a beneficial adaptation for exploration.
ADHD explorers – People with ADHD are more likely to take a risk and explore new options, potentially leading to higher success when foraging. In an online berry foraging task, participants could choose between collecting from one bush, or travelling to pastures new. Participants who scored positively on a subsequent ADHD self-report test were likely to explore new patches sooner than those who screened negative, suggesting that ADHD ‘may reflect an adaptation favouring exploration over exploitation’
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