The Conceptual History of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Idiocy, Imbecility, Encephalitis and the Child Deviant, 1877?1929

Bibliographic Data

ID2151712
AuthorsAdam Rafalovich (a South Oregon University, Ashland, Oregon, USA, corresponding author)
Year2001
Volume22
Issue2
Pages93-115
Publication date2001-03-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueDeviant Behavior (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0163-9625 • E-ISSN: 1521-0456
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/016396201750065009
OpenAlexW2152393909
LanguageEN
Citations received19
References cited9

This article examines the medical discourse that formed the foundations of what mental health professionals today call Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The article examines literature from two medical discussions: 1) the discussion of "imbecility" and "idiocy" in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Western Europe and in the United States; and 2) the diagnosis of encephalitis lethargica in children during the 1920s. The diagnosis of encephalitis lethargica was heavily influenced by the previous discussion of imbecility and occupied a seminal place in the history of medicalizing child behavior. It served as a specific disease category for kids who demonstrated unconventional behavior in a variety of social contexts. It will be argued that the discussion of encephalitis lethargica began a research modality in psychiatry which sought to find neurological bases for childhood deviance, typified by the contemporary discussion of ADHD

Attention deficit · Attention deficit disorder · Conceptual history · Developmental psychology · Political science · Politics · Psychiatry · Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder · Genetic Neurodegenerative Diseases · Law · Neurology and Historical Studies · Psychology