Effects of extrinsic rewards and social comparison on inhibitory control in adults with ADHD symptoms.

Abstract

The current study was an attempt to understand the links between reward processes, upward social comparisons, and behavioral inhibition in adults with ADHD and ADHD symptoms. Studies have shown that motivation can improve inhibitory control in children with ADHD, but little has been done to show the same effect in adults with ADHD. Additionally, social rewards such as praise and positive feedback have been shown to improve inhibitory control in children with ADHD, though not as strongly as tangible rewards. The current study used monetary rewards as well as false information regarding the performance of other participants to elicit an upwards social comparison. Monetary rewards had the greatest effect on the speed of inhibitory control in the ADHD group. Social comparison did not significantly improve the speed of response inhibition in the ADHD group, and in fact seemed to hurt accuracy. On the other hand, it did improve the speed of response inhibition for the non-ADHD control group. Neither monetary rewards nor the social comparison manipulation significantly affected the accuracy of the participants. Overall, the ADHD and control groups performed similarly. Future research needs to examine any differences that may exist in how individuals with ADHD symptoms use social comparison information when compared to their non-ADHD counterparts.