by Julie Burrell | August 5, 2024
A full picture of neurodiversity in the workplace includes understanding how gender shapes employees’ experiences of neurodevelopmental disorders. Although they’re diagnosed at roughly the same rates as men, women with ADHD may be overlooked in conversations about attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Until fairly recently, ADHD was seen as primarily affecting children, with the typical view of someone with the disorder as a restless or hyperactive boy.
Awareness about how ADHD can manifest differently in women — and how gender stereotypes play a significant role in diagnosis and treatment — can help foster a culture that uplifts neurodiversity and the skills that neurodiverse employees can offer an organization. Employees with ADHD bring unique strengths and perspective to their work, such as creativity, courage and hyperfocus.
Here’s what HR needs to know about ADHD and how it can be different for women.
Misconceptions About ADHD
Rather than a set of behaviors, ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition affecting about 2% to 5% of adults, and falls under the same broad umbrella as autism spectrum disorder and dyslexia. A stereotypical picture of someone with ADHD is “a boy who can’t sit still and is disruptive in class,” according to Dr. Deepti Anbarasan, a clinical associate professor of psychiatry at New York University.
Women who receive ADHD diagnoses in adulthood may have struggled with inattention and executive functioning for much of their lives. Because girls and women with ADHD often present as inattentive rather than hyperactive, and because women often develop coping skills that mask ADHD, women often receive late-in-life diagnoses. By the time women reach adulthood, however, the rates of diagnosis are close to those seen in men.
ADHD in women often presents as challenges with executive functioning, which can include difficulties with attention and focus, as well as emotional dysregulation, trouble with finishing tasks or juggling multiple tasks, and absentmindedness. Women with ADHD might also suffer from anxiety and depression, and even suicide attempts and self-harm. Some people with ADHD compensate by working extra hours during their personal time to keep up with their day-to-day work, causing added stress.
A Strengths-Based Approach
Though ADHD can pose real challenges at work, a strengths-based approach highlights the advantages that employees with ADHD bring to their jobs. In a recent study, for example, 50 adults with ADHD identified the positive aspects of living with the condition, including energy and drive, a high degree of creativity, an ability to hyperfocus, and traits such as resilience, curiosity, and empathy. The same study emphasizes that experiencing ADHD as challenging or beneficial depends on the context and sociocultural environment that a person is in.
HR as a Leader in Neurodiversity
Given how much context and sociocultural environment matters, creating a campus climate that supports neurodiversity is critical. HR can champion neurodiversity through awareness and well-being programs. Because ADHD often occurs alongside depression and anxiety, a holistic approach to well-being is recommended. (Learn how the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio gained traction with their mental health awareness campaign.)
HR can also advocate for accommodations to support neurodivergent employees. For example, task separation is a common management strategy to help employees set their work priorities. In emails and written communication this might look like establishing clear parameters, breaking requests down into bulleted lists, and clearly spelling out instructions like “two-minute ask” or “response requested.” (For many more suggestions on how to uplift neurodiversity on campus, including practical tips for accommodations, read Neurodiversity in the Higher Ed Workplace.)
There’s a business case to be made for a robust attention to neurodiversity: increased retention and productivity, reduced absenteeism, and developing employees’ strengths. Supporting neurodiversity also builds an appealing workplace culture, one that signals to employees that their whole person is valued.
More Resources on Women With ADHD
ADHD Is Different for Women, a podcast by the Harvard Business Review
Duke Center for Girls and Women with ADHD
Women and Girls with ADHD from the organization Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD)
