Online

End Date May 1, 2025

Primary Contact Maura O’Sullivan

Email projectspace@unc.edu

Additonal Contact Kym Weed

Email kweed@unc.edu

Study Details

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2023 American Time Use Survey (ATUS; 2024) found that Americans spend an average of nearly 2 hours per day on household activities like chores, maintenance, and meal preparation. These perennial tasks are often more difficult for those with ADHD due to the functional limitations associated with the condition. Despite this, little research exists on the needs and compensation strategies of adults with ADHD in their home environments.

Purpose:

To explore the ways that adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) interact with their home environments, and how those environments influence their symptoms and relationships.

Participants:

Adults with self- or formally-diagnosed ADHD, at least some of whom share living spaces with other people.

Procedures (methods):

This study will take a mixed-methods approach in three parts:

1. The first is a survey with demographic questions and psychometric scales.
2. The second is a semi-structured interview using photo elicitation, which will draw upon participant-collected photographic data and last no longer than one hour.
3. The third is a textual analysis. A submission form where anyone can share a graphic novel, comic, or other related piece of media with the study team will be publicly available on the project’s website.

The principal investigator Maura O’Sullivan can be reached at projectspace@unc.edu, or at mosullivan1@unc.edu. The co-investigator (and faculty supervisor) Kym Weed, PhD, can be reached at kweed@unc.edu.