Module Summary

We have come to the end of this week. Before moving on, we invite you to make a brief
review of what we have learned so far.

This week, we learned that attention is not a single, unitary cognitive process. It involves
several processes and mechanisms according to the demand of a stimulus or task.
Remember that there are different types of attention, which can be impaired
independently or due to having ADHD.

Many authors have proposed different attention models according to the requirements
for paying attention to one or several stimuli among subjects, both with and without
disorders.

First, we learned about the Posner and Petersen’s Model, which includes three different
networks: Alerting network, Orienting network, and Executive network. Each one helps us
manage our day-to-day lives, either by maintaining (alerting network), guiding (orienting
network), or managing (executive network) attentional resources.

Then, we learned about the model by Sohlberg and Mateer. This model is based on the
rehabilitation of people with attention problems and includes different levels: Arousal,
Focal attention, Sustained attention, Selective attention, Divided attention, and
Alternating attention. These levels allow us to receive stimuli, focus on a stimulus,
maintain attention on it, select relevant stimuli, attend to several stimuli at the same time,
and switch between stimuli, respectively.

The different components of the models let us perform a huge number of actions and
influence other cognitive functions, such as memory. When any of these is impaired, it can
greatly modify our performance and our daily functionality. For example, if a person
cannot sustain their attention for too long, their alertness network or sustained attention
may be affected.

Later, we addressed the importance of assessing each of these types of attention through
neuropsychological tests, which give us objective information about the kind of mistakes
patients with ADHD make when doing certain tasks. These mistakes involve the alerting
network and the executive network, on one hand, and sustained, selective, divided, and

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alternating attention, on the other. There are different tasks to evaluate each of these
components and, if a person fails in several of them, a professional examiner would use
this relevant insight to make a diagnosis.

We also learned that, alongside neuropsychological testing, there are questionnaires to

assess the presence of ADHD symptoms. Depending on whether it is for children or adults,
there are different scales, like the SNAP scale for children and the DIVA scale for adults.
The SNAP scale asks the parents about the current symptoms of their child, while the DIVA
scale includes an exhaustive questionnaire of ADHD symptoms from DSM criteria,
covering both current and past symptoms.

Attention can be impaired in ADHD, but that does not mean that there are no other
disorders that can affect attention. Several disorders and neurodevelopmental disorders
can affect attention or can generate symptoms that, at first glance, can be mistaken for
attentional symptoms. Keep in mind, that a person who has ADHD may also have other
neurodevelopmental disorders.

In the next week, we will delve further into these topics.

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