The Boredom-ADHD Nexus: A Narrative and Meta-Analytic Review of the Evidence.

IF 7.9 1区心理学 Q1 PSYCHOLOGY, CLINICAL

Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review Pub Date : 2026-03-11 DOI:10.1007/s10567-026-00563-9

Peter Muris,Henry Otgaar,Franc Donkers

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Abstract

This paper examines the intersection of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and boredom. We begin with a short overview of ADHD, describing its core symptoms, cognitive features, and biological underpinnings, followed by discussion of boredom as a psychological construct, with an emphasis on individual differences in boredom propensity. Next, we review existing empirical studies and present new meta-analytic findings concerning the link between ADHD and boredom. Across 18 mostly correlational studies (total N = 22,365), an overall effect of r = 0.40 (95% CI: 0.35-0.46) was observed, indicating a statistically significant positive association between boredom and ADHD. Building on these findings, we propose an integrated theoretical framework explaining why individuals with ADHD may be particularly susceptible to boredom and how this susceptibility may affect motivation, emotion regulation, and goal-directed behavior. Finally, we discuss clinical implications and describe key directions for future research. The current work highlights boredom as a central, rather than peripheral, experience in ADHD, with important implications for theory building, assessment practices, and intervention.

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无聊与adhd的关系：证据的叙述与元分析回顾。

本文探讨了注意力缺陷/多动障碍（ADHD）和无聊的交集。我们首先简要介绍ADHD，描述其核心症状、认知特征和生物学基础，然后讨论无聊作为一种心理结构，强调无聊倾向的个体差异。接下来，我们回顾了现有的实证研究，并提出了新的关于多动症和无聊之间联系的元分析结果。在18个主要相关的研究（总N = 22,365）中，观察到r = 0.40 （95% CI: 0.35-0.46）的总体效应，表明无聊和多动症之间存在统计学上显著的正相关。在这些发现的基础上，我们提出了一个综合的理论框架来解释为什么ADHD患者特别容易感到无聊，以及这种易感性如何影响动机、情绪调节和目标导向行为。最后，我们讨论了临床意义并描述了未来研究的重点方向。目前的工作强调无聊是ADHD的中心体验，而不是外围体验，对理论建立、评估实践和干预具有重要意义。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review PSYCHOLOGY, CLINICAL-

CiteScore

10.50

自引率

4.30%

发文量

期刊介绍： Editors-in-Chief: Dr. Ronald J. Prinz, University of South Carolina and Dr. Thomas H. Ollendick, Virginia Polytechnic Institute Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review is a quarterly, peer-reviewed journal that provides an international, interdisciplinary forum in which important and new developments in this field are identified and in-depth reviews on current thought and practices are published. The Journal publishes original research reviews, conceptual and theoretical papers, and related work in the broad area of the behavioral sciences that pertains to infants, children, adolescents, and families. Contributions originate from a wide array of disciplines including, but not limited to, psychology (e.g., clinical, community, developmental, family, school), medicine (e.g., family practice, pediatrics, psychiatry), public health, social work, and education. Topical content includes science and application and covers facets of etiology, assessment, description, treatment and intervention, prevention, methodology, and public policy. Submissions are by invitation only and undergo peer review. The Editors, in consultation with the Editorial Board, invite highly qualified experts to contribute original papers on topics of timely interest and significance.