ADHD in the College Student: Is Anyone Else Worried?

The illegal, non-prescriptive use of prescription stimulants appears to be growing among college students. Recent analyses using DSM-IV criteria suggest that this group of misusers may actually represent cases of undiagnosed ADHD. Such analyses, however, are limited by a diagnostic system that is neither contextural nor dimensional. The ADHD symptoms of the newly diagnosed college student may be highly context and time specific and represent a normal response to temporarily increased demands on intellect and motivation. Diagnosing college students who are misusing stimulants with ADHD runs the risk of further trivializing the ADHD diagnosis. Also from a historical perspective, legitimizing the use of prescription stimulants in this age group may unintentionally only further increase the likelihood of a greater prescription stimulant abuse epidemic.