Non-specific effects of methylphenidate (Ritalin) on cognitive ability and decision-making of ADHD and healthy adults
- 28 April 2010
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Psychopharmacology
- Vol. 210 (4), 511-519
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-010-1853-4
Abstract
The effect of a single dose of methylphenidate (MPH) on cognitive measures and decision-making processes was assessed in a sample of adults with ADHD and in a control sample. Thirty-two adults satisfying DSM-IV criteria for ADHD and 26 healthy controls performed several cognitive tasks. Half of the participants received MPH prior to performing the tasks, and the other half received placebo in a randomized, double-blind manner. The average digit-span test score was higher in the groups receiving MPH compared to the groups receiving placebo, while diagnosis did not have an effect upon scores. In decision-making tasks, however, MPH did not have an effect upon performance, whereas in one of the tasks the average proportion of risky choices was higher in ADHD adults compared to controls. Our data therefore demonstrates that (a) MPH is capable of enhancing specific aspects of cognitive performance and (b) this enhancement is not specific to ADHD.Keywords
This publication has 45 references indexed in Scilit:
- The Effects of Methylphenidate on Decision Making in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity DisorderBiological Psychiatry, 2008
- Increasing use of stimulants warns of potential abuseNature, 2008
- Methylphenidate Decreased the Amount of Glucose Needed by the Brain to Perform a Cognitive TaskPLOS ONE, 2008
- Acute effects of methylphenidate on neuropsychological parameters in adults with ADHD: possible relevance for therapyJournal of Neural Transmission, 2008
- Emotion-based decision-making in healthy subjects: short-term effects of reducing dopamine levelsPsychopharmacology, 2006
- Effects of two doses of methylphenidate on simulator driving performance in adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorderJournal of Safety Research, 2005
- Individual differences in the response to forgone payoffs: an examination of high functioning drug abusersJournal of Behavioral Decision Making, 2005
- Effects of Stimulants on the Continuous Performance Test (CPT)Implications for CPT Use and InterpretationThe Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 2001
- Neuropsychological performance of a sample of adults with ADHD, developmental reading disorder, and controlsDevelopmental Neuropsychology, 1998
- Insensitivity to future consequences following damage to human prefrontal cortexCognition, 1994