Distinctive linguistic styles in children with ADHD.

To assess whether the writing styles of children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) combined type differ significantly from those of children in a nonclinical control group, writing samples from 17 children with ADHD combined type and 18 children in a nonclinical control group were compared using the language analysis program Korean Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count. These writing samples, produced in response to instructions, served as dependent variables. Analysis showed that children with ADHD used fewer linguistic variables (e.g., sentences, phrases, and morphemes) than the control group. In addition, the ADHD group used fewer words reflecting cognitive processes and fewer pronouns than members of the control group. Also, the ADHD group showed a different pattern in the use of words referring to friends. This study provides preliminary descriptive data on language use among children diagnosed with a main subtype of ADHD.