Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) affects a significant portion of the adult population and can impact social functioning and workplace relationships. However, current social network theories often rely on assumptions of neurotypical functioning, overlooking how ADHD may reshape relational dynamics in ways that challenge deficit-only models. This study examines the impact of ADHD symptomology, specifically the hyperactive/impulsive (ADHD/H) and inattentive (ADHD/I) subtypes, on key workplace social ties: friendship, advice, and conflict. It is hypothesized that ADHD/H will be positively associated with the number of friendship, advice, and conflict ties, while ADHD/I will be negatively associated with friendship and advice but positively related to conflict. Data were collected from two samples of working adults in the U.S. (284 employees and 199 entrepreneurs) using ego-network measures. Generalized structural equation model path analyses showed that ADHD/H was positively related to the number of friendship and advice ties in both samples and to conflict ties in the entrepreneurial sample while ADHD/I was positively related only to friendships, contrary to predictions. The findings suggest a balanced view of ADHD as a 'mixed blessing' in adult work settings, revealing how ADHD traits can enhance positive ties while also increasing conflicts with important differences based on subtype and sample. Post-hoc analyses further showed that conflict types (work- and personal-related) were differentially impacted by ADHD subtypes for the two samples. This study contributes to the literature by integrating the positives and negatives of neurodiversity into relational theories and differentiating ADHD subtypes to gain nuanced insights.
Joshua E. Marineau (Mon,) studied this question.