There can be a thin line between the diagnosis of ADHD and creativity.
The metaphor “thinking outside the box” describes an unconventional and creative way of thinking. But for some students with ADHD, the box doesn’t even exist. They are often labeled as inattentive, hyperactive, and impulsive—nothing positive.
Yet, these three traits can be reframed and become the keys to unlocking creativity. Inattention can be translated as diverse interests, hyperactivity as excitement, and impulsivity as risk-taking.
In the following study, Bonnie Cramond looks at the problems creative children may face when their behaviors are mistaken for ADHD.
1- Inattention And Creativity
“He gets easily distracted, he keeps daydreaming, he struggles to complete his tasks,” these are words you often hear teachers say when talking about ADHD students, but the glass is not only half empty.
Creative people have a wide range of interests and carry the seeds of many ideas simultaneously. Expecting them to focus on a single task might be a lost battle.
The case of Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci is known to be a prolific mind. He was an active draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. But we often remember him as a painter even though there are only 17 paintings that can be attributed to the 67-year-old artist, and some of them are incomplete. He has left behind countless unfinished works.
Pope Leo X was so frustrated about Da Vinci’s tendency to leave projects unfinished that he would have said: “This man will never accomplish anything! He thinks of the end before the beginning.”
Thinking of the end before the beginning, today, we call this visualization.
The case of Nikola Tesla
People with ADHD are easily distracted and uninterested because they daydream. But what if they were thinking outside the classroom box? What if they were nurturing the ability to focus on internal thoughts and visualization?
Nikola Tesla was an inventor and an electrical and mechanical engineer and is best known for his contribution to the design of modern alternating current electricity supply.
Tesla had such strong visualization abilities that he would imagine the workings of his inventions in detail without putting anything on paper or conducting any experiments until all of the problems were worked out. From the outside, he would have looked like a daydreamer, yet the machinery worked intensively.
2- Hyperactivity, ADHD And Creativity
How to differentiate hyperactivity from a high level of normal activity or discriminate between agitation that prevents one from completing tasks and agitation that leads one to productivity?
Hyperactivity in the classroom is often characterized by fidgeting, difficulty staying seated, running, climbing, and the inability to play or speak quietly. However, for older individuals, hyperactivity can manifest as an internal feeling of restlessness.
Let’s go back to Tesla, the daydreamer. His coworkers in the laboratory were amazed at his radiating vitality, his high level of energy, and his ability to work without sleep for two to three days.
3- Impulsivity, ADHD And Creativity
A child is blurting out answers in class? That’s impulsivity, according to the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders). The previous version of the DSM also included acting without thinking.
Yet, if we step out of the classroom, acting without thinking could be translated as risk-taking or thrill-seeking. Creative people are innovators; they break the boundaries of the known world.
4- Other Similarities Between ADHD And Creativity
ADHD students are characterized by their difficult temperament, lack of social skills, and academic underachievement, but these symptoms don’t differentiate enough between a creative and a child with ADHD.
Creative people are often unconventional and unwilling to compromise: you can’t make them turn left when they want to go right. They might come off as being socially awkward, but it is argued that the creative process requires detachment from others. Einstein, for instance, didn’t like the rigidness of school and left at age 15—no compromise.
Academic underachievement cannot be used as a distinction either. Richard Branson struggled academically, failed his exams, and left school at age 15. In 2023, he was worth 3.6 billion dollars. A lot of creative and successful people didn’t do so well in school.
Takeaways
Of course, not all creative students will bounce off the walls or have difficulty focusing. Similarly, not all ADHD students are Da Vinci-to-be. To avoid wrongly labeling creative students because of their behavior, Bonnie Cramond gives some recommendations to teachers and parents:
- Be open-minded to the possibility that challenging behaviors may be indicative of special abilities, such as creativity, as well as problems.
- Become knowledgeable about the behavioral manifestations of ADHD and creativity.
- Observe and record under what conditions the key behaviors are intensified or reduced.
- Ask the child what s/he is thinking about right after daydreaming.
- Provide opportunities inside and outside of school to enhance creativity and boost self-esteem.
- Be sure that a creativity test or checklist is completed in addition to the ADHD checklist.
- Be cautious about recommendations for an unstimulating curriculum with lessons broken into small parts.
- If the child is referred for psychological screening: Whenever possible, choose a psychologist who is knowledgeable about giftedness and creativity as well as ADHD (or willing to learn).
Leave a Reply