Adults with ADHD who understand and apply their personal strengths experience better well-being and fewer mental health difficulties.

A new international study reports that adults with ADHD who are aware of their personal strengths and use them regularly tend to experience higher well-being, better quality of life, and fewer mental health problems.

Scientists from the University of Bath, King’s College London, and Radboud University Medical Center in the Netherlands conducted the first large-scale investigation designed to measure psychological strengths in adults with ADHD.

Published in Psychological Medicine, the study compared 200 adults with ADHD and 200 adults without ADHD, examining how strongly participants identified with 25 positive characteristics. These traits included creativity, humor, spontaneity, and hyperfocus, which researchers described as “things [they] do well or best.”

Although ADHD is commonly linked to difficulties such as impulsivity, forgetfulness, and inattention, the findings point to a different perspective by emphasizing the importance of recognizing and making use of individual strengths.

Luca Hargitai, lead researcher from the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath, said: “These exciting findings give us an indication of which positive qualities may be tied to ADHD and thus can be considered ADHD-related strengths. It can be really empowering to recognize that, while ADHD is associated with various difficulties, it does have several positive aspects.”

Strengths More Strongly Endorsed by Adults With ADHD

Participants with ADHD more strongly endorsed 10 strengths than their neurotypical peers, including:

• Hyperfocus (deep concentration on tasks of interest)
• Humor
• Creativity
• Spontaneity
• Intuitiveness

Despite the long-term challenges that adults with ADHD often face in areas such as work, relationships, and mental health, the study found they were just as likely as people without ADHD to recognize and apply their strengths in everyday life.

Strength Awareness Linked to Better Mental Health

Crucially, across both groups, those who knew more about their own strengths and used them more often reported:

• Higher subjective well-being
• Better quality of life (across physical, psychological, social, and environmental domains)
• Fewer symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress

Dr. Punit Shah, senior author and Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Bath, said: “Our findings highlight that knowing that we have certain skills and positive qualities at our disposal and using these strengths where appropriate can be beneficial for our well-being. This might sound obvious, but now that our research confirms this hypothesis, we can start designing psychological supports with this fresh evidence.”

Implications for Strengths-Based Interventions

The findings offer support for strengths-based interventions in mental health services – an approach increasingly used in autism services but underexplored for ADHD. These could include psychoeducational strategies, coaching, and tailored therapies that help individuals identify and apply their strengths.

Dr. Shah added: “The next step now is to investigate whether interventions that promote the recognition and use of personal strengths can offer tangible improvements in mental well-being for adults with ADHD. People with ADHD and other neurodivergences have been calling for this for a long time, and we are excited to have some of the first research to support this.”

Senior-author Assistant Professor Martine Hoogman from Radboud University Medical Center, Netherlands, said: “Research on ADHD-related strengths is still in its early stages. Most studies ask only people with ADHD about their strengths, but we also asked neurotypical people. We found that people without ADHD recognize many of the same strengths, though only those with ADHD endorse some of them. This helps us better understand ADHD strengths.

“It’s important to educate people with ADHD not just about challenges, but also about their potential strengths to improve quality of life and reduce risks in work or education.”