Evaluating a scale of excessive mind wandering among males and females with and without attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder from a population sample

Abstract

Recent studies highlight the role of excessive mind wandering in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and its association with impairment. We believe assessing mind wandering could be especially relevant to individuals, including many females, who present with less externalising manifestations of ADHD. Using a new measure based on ADHD patient reports, the Mind Excessively Wandering Scale (MEWS), we previously found adults with ADHD had elevated levels of mind wandering that contributed to impairment independently of core ADHD symptoms. Using data from an online general population survey, the current study assessed the factor-structure, reliability, validity and measurement invariance of the MEWS. We also investigated sex differences in mind wandering, as well as ADHD symptoms, impairment and wellbeing in those with and without ADHD. The MEWS had a unidimensional structure, was invariant across sex, age and ADHD status, and accounted for unique variance in impairment and wellbeing beyond core ADHD symptoms. Among those with ADHD, we found no evidence for sex differences in mind wandering and among those without ADHD males had higher scores. We also found similar levels of hyperactivity/impulsivity, emotional lability, and impairment in males and females with ADHD, but males reported greater inattention and lower wellbeing. Results suggest the MEWS is a reliable and valid instrument measuring the same construct across sex, age and ADHD status, which could aid diagnosis and monitoring of outcomes.

Mind‐wandering in children with and without ADHD

“…The correlations between MW and inattention and MW and hyperactivity/impulsivity were of similar magnitudes. Although this might seem surprising, this is in fact similar to the validation study of the MEWS in adults with ADHD (Mowlem et al , ), and a large population survey found that MEWS scores were correlated to a similar degree with inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity (both around r = .70; Mowlem et al , ). This is in contrast to a study in adults using a different MW scale, the 5‐item Mind‐Wandering Scale (MWS) which found larger associations between MW and the inattentive dimension (Biederman et al , ).…”

“…We did so by assessing the feasibility of using the Mind Excessively Wandering Scale (MEWS) in 82 children aged 8–13 years, of which 35 had a diagnosis of ADHD. The MEWS has previously been found to be a valid tool for assessing MW in adults with ADHD (Mowlem et al , , ). Here, we examined the validity of the MEWS in children with and without ADHD, and the relationship between MW, inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity and functional domains.…”

“…MW was assessed using the MEWS, a 12‐item self‐report measure created to assess MW in adults with ADHD (see Figure ; Mowlem et al , , ). The children rated the items on a scale from 0 ( not at all or rarely ) to 3 ( nearly all of the time or constantly ).…”

“…It is perhaps surprising that despite the high prevalence of ADHD in children, there is to date only one extant study on MW in children with ADHD. Here we aim to address this issue using the Mind Excessively Wandering Scale (MEWS; Mowlem, Agnew‐Blais, Pingault, & Asherson, ; Mowlem et al , ). The MEWS is a 12‐item self‐report scale (see Figure ) based on ADHD patients’ accounts of subjective experiences of their thought processes.…”

Electrophysiological correlates of spontaneous mind wandering in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

“…These criteria reflect the behavioural symptoms commonly reported by parents and teachers about children with this condition. However, based on the subjective experiences of individuals with ADHD, we recently highlighted the potential role of excessive spontaneous mind wandering (MW-S) on ADHD-related impairments in daily life [ 3 , 4 ]. Based on a narrative review of the literature on MW-S and ADHD, we proposed that spontaneous, uncontrolled and task-irrelevant thoughts, as opposed to controlled, goal-oriented, deliberate mind wandering (MW-D), might provide a potential mechanism underlying cognitive, behavioural and functional impairments in individuals with ADHD [ 5 ].…”