Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in Australia: Perspectives from the sociology of deviance

Abstract

Over the last twenty years, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has become one of the most diagnosed childhood disorders in the western world. Research within the disciplines of psychiatry and criminology has increasingly identified a link between ADHD, delinquency and crime. So far, consideration of ADHD from sociological perspectives has been limited, while it has been virtually ignored as a diagnosis with social impact and a popular phenomenon within Australia. In response, this article draws on conceptual resources from the sociology of deviance to illustrate the value of sociological perspectives and to explore questions about the impact of ADHD that psycho-medical perspectives cannot. In doing so, the article adds to existing understandings of the social aspects of this prominent disorder and aims to encourage the development of new conceptualisations that lie beyond the existing deficit label.