M.A. (Clinical Psychology) / Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a form of psychopathology characterised by difficulties with hyperactivity, attention and behavioural inhibition. Although ADHD has been historically considered a disorder specific to children, the contemporary consensus among researchers is that, in some cases, ADHD may persist into adulthood. Neurologically, ADHD is associated with deficits in the executive functions, located in the frontal lobe. Cortical arousal, which refers to the level of neuronal activity in the cerebral cortex and is measurable using electroencephalograph machinery (EEGs), is usually lower in the frontal lobes in those with ADHD when compared to individuals without the disorder. With regards to anxiety disorders, which are dysfunctional variations in the normal fear response, the aetiology of the pathologies in this category are multifaceted and complex. At the neurological level, however, there is a clear link between anxiety disorders and hypervigilance, which is characterised by high cortical arousal in the frontal lobes. Despite the fact that, at face value, it seems impossible for an increase and decrease in cortical arousal to occur simultaneously, ADHD is often diagnosed alongside anxiety disorders, and it is this anomaly which is the focus of this study. Electroencephalograph machinery (EEGs) are able to measure levels of cortical arousal using electrodes placed on the scalp. This research employs this equipment in order to elucidate on how cortical arousal manifests during a task that demands significant involvement from the frontal areas of the brain. A quasi-xperimental research design using non-parametric statistics (Mann-Whitney U Test) was used in order to compare the levels of cortical arousal between 4 groups of 5 research participants with either ADHD, an anxiety disorder, comorbid ADHD and anxiety and no discernible psychopathology. The significant results found in this study point to the fact that, in cases where ADHD and anxiety disorders occur comorbidly, there is a possibility that the anxiety component enables an individual to achieve more pronounced levels of attention, concentration and focus than normal participants and those with ADHD alone...
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uj/uj:12715 |
| Date | 29 October 2014 |
| Creators | Ferreira, Quentin |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | University of Johannesburg |
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