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Feed, Research

Exploring the experiences of young people with ADHD

17 October 2025
Margarida Maximo

Margarida Maximo

In this blog, Tamara Williams, Research Assistant at the Wolfson Centre, talks about a recent study exploring how attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can look different in girls and young women. The study focused on hearing directly from young adults with lived experience of ADHD.

Improving the diagnosis of ADHD

ADHD is diagnosed more often in boys than in girls. When girls do get a diagnosis of ADHD, it is often at a later age than boys.

Previous research, including another of recent studies, has suggested that ADHD diagnosis may be delayed in girls compared to boys. This may be partly because the presentation of ADHD looks different in girls and women and boys and men. The criteria doctors use to diagnose ADHD were originally developed based on studies of mostly young boys. This can make it harder to recognise ADHD in girls and women, leading to delays in diagnosis.

An important step towards improving the timeliness of diagnosis is getting a better understanding of what ADHD looks like in young girls. This can help identify any potential ADHD-related difficulties that are not fully captured by the diagnostic criteria. Qualitative studies are needed to examine in detail the lived experience of young women with ADHD. However, very few qualitative studies have explored ADHD from the perspective of girls and women.

What our study found

In a recently published study, we explored how ADHD symptoms appeared in young girls during childhood, going beyond the diagnostic criteria, and including gender-diverse individuals. We interviewed 12 young adults aged 18 to 25 (ten women and two non-binary individuals, all assigned female at birth) about their experiences of growing up with ADHD.

We found that participants described many symptoms that fit the standard diagnostic criteria, but they also shared experiences that aren’t currently recognised in those criteria. From these interviews, we identified four main themes:

  1. Socially-oriented and internalised symptoms – this theme described that ADHD symptoms in girls may present socially (such as losing track of thoughts during a conversation), be non-disruptive to others (such as doodling during school lessons), and be internalised (such as internal feelings of frustration).
  2. Social impacts – this theme highlighted that ADHD symptoms in girls often have a negative impact on their relationships with friends, family members, and teachers.
  3. Masking and compensation – this theme described that girls with ADHD may use different behaviours or strategies to hide or suppress their ADHD symptoms. The motivation for this was often to try to fit in with others. However, participants also described that masking could have negative consequences, such as burnout.
  4. The importance of context – participants highlighted that ADHD symptoms can vary across different environments, such as home and school. Symptoms depended on how safe and supported they felt, how much they were enjoying something, and how loud or busy an environment was.

Overall, our study suggests that the presentation of ADHD symptoms in girls can be less visible, more internalised, and strongly influenced by social context. Future research should consider whether current ADHD assessments should be adjusted to take these factors into account. This could aid earlier recognition and diagnosis of ADHD in children and young people, especially in girls.

Next steps

Building on this study and as part of a larger research project, funded by Health and Care Research Wales, the research team led by Dr Joanna Martin at Cardiff University is developing a new gender-inclusive ADHD assessment tool. This new tool is called the Behaviour, Emotion & Attention Regulation Scale (BEARS) and also includes a masking and support supplement called the Behaviour, Emotion & Attention – Masking and Support Scale (BEAMS).

These new tools were co-developed with young people and parents and carers with lived experience of ADHD as well as professionals such as educational and healthcare staff who work with individuals with ADHD. The aim is for the BEARS and BEAMS to help identify ADHD-related difficulties early, especially in children whose symptoms may not match traditional expectations.

We have now launched a new study inviting parents and carers of children aged 9-11 (years 5 and 6 of primary school) in Wales to complete the BEARS and BEAMS questionnaires. We are interested in hearing from parents and carers of children with and without ADHD. If you are interested in hearing more about our new study and taking part, please visit our study page.

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