Background: While psychosocial interventions for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children are well-established, there is a gap in addressing ADHD symptoms that persist into adulthood, particularly those impacting occupational functioning. Adults living with ADHD often face challenges in the workplace related to time management, regulating attention, task prioritization, and meeting deadlines. The Minds@Work-QWL study sought to evaluate the efficacy of a novel workplace intervention targeting quality of work life in adults living with ADHD.
Methods: A two-arm parallel single-blind randomized controlled trial (RCT) compared an 8 week manualized group intervention to an active control group. Eligible participants were recruited from the general population, assessed at baseline and post-intervention, and randomized (N = 57). Quality of work life (QWL) served as the primary outcome while secondary outcomes included self-reported measures of cognitive functioning at work (CFW). Linear mixed-effects models were used following an intention-to-treat approach.
Results: At baseline, all participants reported severe ADHD symptoms (M = 50.5, SD = 7.6) with no between-group differences. Linear mixed model analyses revealed a significant main effect of Time (F(1, 45.48) = 9.11, p = .004) on CFW, indicating greater improvement in the intervention group compared to the control group over time.
Discussion: To our knowledge, this is the first RCT examining the effect of an occupational intervention in adults living with ADHD. Despite non-significant p-values, the large effect size suggests promising clinical relevance. Manualized group interventions administered virtually may provide a cost-efficient solution to improve CFW in adults living with ADHD.
Keywords: ADHD · RCT · quality of life · workplace · intervention · cognitive functioning