Workplace Focus for Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Abstract

ADHD has long been thought of as a children's disorder, that you grow out of during puberty. Now we know that this is not the case: 72% of children with ADHD still have it as adults, meaning that an estimated 2.1% of adults in the Netherlands have some form of ADHD. This means that these people still have symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, and/or impulsivity at a later age. Besides that, self-regulation can be difficult, among other so-called 'executive functioning' skills. This can lead to difficulty focusing and finishing tasks, through procrastination and distraction. This project focuses on just that: how adults with ADHD be helped to focus and get things done, through design. At the start of this project, all adults with ADHD in the scope of the project, which is narrowed down this to students in the second phase of ideation. As a graduation project in the master Design for Interaction, this project draws from Human- Centered Design. The perspectives and needs of the people involved are explored through design research methods, such as generative research. The project then focuses on procrastination as its intervention point, as nearly all students with ADHD experience this, and for them a good or bad start of a study session can determine whether something gets done that day at all. It was found that one of the most consistent ways to motivate people with ADHD to start and keep studying is a study buddy. The rest of the project explores how to make finding new study buddies as low-threshold as possible. The result of this project is a concept called ConnectMe, an online study platform that promises to instantly match a student with ADHD to another student with ADHD, with the click of a button. ConnectMe mediates the study session with a stranger by offering an ice breaker, and guiding the two study partners through setting a study schedule for the day. The platform helps sticking to the set study periods (bursts) and breaks, and evaluating the study day. ConnectMe allows students with ADHD to send buddy requests if their study session was a success, invite outside friends to the platform to study together, and so build out their personal study community. The concept is evaluated with students with ADHD by way of a walkthrough of an online prototype. The students were positive about the design, expecting it to do a good job of helping them deal with procrastination, distractions, and creating a working atmosphere. Overall, it is well-designed, and students especially liked the time planner system.