Let Kids Be Kids
Brief History of ADHD

Home | Brief History | Conditions Sometimes Mistaken for ADHD | Effects of Labeling a Child with ADHD

ADHD was first used as a diagnosis in 1902 by the English physician George Frederic Still. Dr. Sill labeled a group of about 20 kids as "aggressive, defiant, and dishonest." He did not feel this was the fault of the guardians so he linked the behavior to a hereditary factor for some children and injury in the womb for other children.

In the 1930's the first us of stimulants occurred. Dr. Charles Bradley prescribed Benzedrine (also know as speed) to calm children down. 1961 brought Ritalin. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved this drug for treating "behavior syndromes in children," including hyperactivity.

The term "Attention Deficit Disorder" (ADD) was coined by Canadian researcher Virginia Douglas in 1927. Douglas argued that the problem with hyperactive kids was their inability to pay attention. The term "Attention Deficit Disorder" was not used by the American Psychiatric Association until 1980. The new disease was put in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual III in 1980. Douglas changed the way that people were diagnosed upon introducing ADD. A diagnosis of ADD could be diagnosed with or without the symptom of hyperactivity.

The edition of DSM-III-R, published in 1987, added hyperactivity to the diagnosis of ADD causing the name change to Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. A vote by the American Psychiatric Association put Both ADD and ADHD into effect.

Click to see a timeline on ADHD

Questions or comments may be directed to Rochelle at knaackrs@uwec.edu

Page last updated on April 2, 2004