How is the diagnosis of ADHD made based on symptoms?
To arrive at a valid diagnosis, physicians and other professionals look for these criteria: • The child must present at least six of nine symptoms specified in the Manual for each group or subcategory. Some children display all nine symptoms. • “Some” symptoms of inattention or hyperactivity or impulsivity must have been observed before the age of 7 years. Most parents of ADHD children have little difficulty in remembering having observed them. • The third criterion is that behaviors or symptoms observed must produce some kind of impairment or malfunctioning in the child in at least two places. For example, symptoms of ADHD may result in a child’s below-average performance at school, and may bring about pain, discomfort and chaos in the family setting. Or, for example, the malfunction could show up at home and at Scout meetings, but not at school, because a particular teacher has a very strong behavioral program, is very strict, and class time is very structured. An ADHD child may be a
