Positive Bias in Teenage Drivers with ADHD Within a Simulated Driving Task

Another area of difference between youth with ADHD and those without is the degree to which a positive bias is evident. The positive bias can be defined as a reliable difference between self-assessed competence and objectively assessed competence wherein the self-assessment is more positive than the objective assessment. This positive bias has been found to be reliably greater in individuals with ADHD in multiple studies of children. However, there is currently little research on the extent to which the positive bias continues to be present in adolescent samples of youth with ADHD, and studies with such samples are needed to investigate whether this cognitive style is present within tasks important for appropriate adolescent development such as driving. Positive bias on a driving simulator task was investigated with 172 teenagers with ADHD, combined type. Youth participated in a driving simulation task and rated driving performance afterward. Results: Compared with external ratings of driving performance, youth overestimated driving competence for specific driving behaviors as well as globally. The global rating demonstrated a greater degree of positive bias. Greater positive bias on global ratings of driving ability also predicted greater rates of risky driving behaviors during the simulator exercise independent from disruptive behavior disorder symptoms. Results inform prevention and intervention efforts for teenage drivers with ADHD.