Enhanced creativity in autism likely due to co-occurring ADHD

Autism and ADHD often co-occur, sharing characteristics in cognitive processing and social interaction styles.

Both are associated with creative thinking, though through potentially different mechanisms.

Investigating creativity in autism and ADHD is crucial to understand diverse cognitive strengths, challenge stereotypes, and develop supportive environments that nurture creative potential across neurodevelopmental differences.

Taylor, E. C., Gocłowska, M. A., Callan, M. J., & Livingston, L. A. (2025). Enhanced creativity in autism is due to co-occurring attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Journal of Psychopathology and Clinical Science. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000910

Key Points

• Autistic and non-autistic adults performed similarly on a divergent thinking creativity task, showing no significant differences in fluency, flexibility, or originality.
• Autistic adults self-reported more real-world creative accomplishments and behaviors compared to non-autistic adults.
• The higher self-reported creativity in autistic adults was fully accounted for by co-occurring ADHD, rather than autism itself.
• After controlling for ADHD, autism was either a null or negative predictor of creativity across various measures.
• ADHD, not autism, was a significant predictor of greater creative achievement and behaviors.
• The study challenges the notion that enhanced creativity is a fundamental strength associated with autism.
• Findings suggest that enhanced creativity, where observed in autism, is likely driven by co-occurring ADHD.
• Results highlight the importance of accounting for co-occurring conditions in autism research and when developing strength-based approaches.

Rationale

Previous research has suggested enhanced creativity as a key strength associated with autism, but evidence has been limited and inconsistent.

Small-scale studies using nonclinical samples have found mixed results, with some indicating reduced ideational fluency but increased originality in individuals with higher autistic traits (Best et al., 2015; Jankowska et al., 2019).

However, these studies have not accounted for general cognitive ability or co-occurring conditions like ADHD, which is known to be associated with creativity (Hoogman et al., 2020).

Additionally, most research has focused on divergent thinking tasks rather than real-world creative achievements.

This study aimed to address these limitations by comparing creativity in diagnosed autistic and non-autistic adults while accounting for general cognitive ability and ADHD.

The research sought to provide a more comprehensive understanding of autism-related creativity using both performance-based and self-report measures.

Method

Procedure

The study employed a case-control design, comparing autistic and non-autistic adults on various creativity measures.

Participants completed all measures presented in randomized order, followed by key demographic questions.

Sample

352 adults (176 autistic, 176 non-autistic) were recruited via Prolific.co. Autistic participants had clinical diagnoses from independent healthcare professionals. Groups were matched on age, sex (at birth), and general cognitive ability.

Measures

1. Divergent Thinking (DT): Alternative Uses Task (brick task)
2. Creative Achievement Questionnaire (CAQ)
3. Biographical Inventory of Creative Behaviors (BICB)
4. Gough’s Creative Personality Scale (CPS)
5. Creative Self-Efficacy Scale
6. Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ)
7. Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS-V1.1)
8. International Cognitive Ability Resource (ICAR)

Statistical measures

Independent samples t-tests, Bayesian t-tests, multiple regression analyses, and robustness checks were conducted.

Results

Hypothesis 1: Autistic adults will show differences in divergent thinking compared to non-autistic adults.

Result: No significant differences were found between autistic and non-autistic groups in DT task performance (fluency, flexibility, originality).

Hypothesis 2: Autistic adults will report differences in real-world creative achievements and behaviors compared to non-autistic adults.

Result: Autistic adults reported significantly more creative achievements and behaviors than non-autistic adults.

Hypothesis 3: Differences in creativity between autistic and non-autistic adults will remain after accounting for general cognitive ability and ADHD.

Result: After accounting for ADHD, autism was either a null or negative predictor of creativity across measures. ADHD, not autism, was a significant predictor of greater creative achievement and behaviors.

Insight

This study provides crucial insights into the relationship between autism, ADHD, and creativity.

Contrary to popular belief, the research found that enhanced creativity is not a fundamental characteristic of autism itself.

Instead, the higher levels of creative achievements and behaviors reported by autistic individuals appear to be driven by co-occurring ADHD.

These findings extend previous research by addressing important limitations in earlier studies. By using a clinically diagnosed sample, accounting for general cognitive ability, and considering the role of ADHD, this study offers a more nuanced understanding of creativity in autism.

The results challenge the notion of creativity as an autistic strength and highlight the importance of considering co-occurring conditions in autism research.

The study also demonstrates the value of using multiple measures of creativity, including both performance-based tasks and self-report measures of real-world creative achievements.

This comprehensive approach revealed that while autistic individuals did not differ from non-autistic individuals in divergent thinking tasks, they did report more creative accomplishments and behaviors in everyday life.

Future research could explore the specific mechanisms by which ADHD contributes to enhanced creativity in some autistic individuals.

Additionally, investigating creativity in autistic individuals with varying levels of verbal and non-verbal skills, as well as those with co-occurring intellectual disabilities, would provide a more complete picture of creativity across the autism spectrum.

Implications

The findings have significant implications for clinical practice, education, and employment strategies related to autism:

1. Strength-based approaches: Clinicians and educators should be cautious about promoting creativity as a universal strength in autism. Instead, they should focus on identifying individual strengths and abilities, which may include creativity for some autistic individuals, particularly those with co-occurring ADHD.
2. Tailored interventions: Interventions aimed at enhancing or utilizing creativity in autistic individuals may be more effective if targeted towards those with co-occurring ADHD or higher ADHD traits.
3. Employment strategies: Employers seeking to leverage autism-related creativity should be aware that this strength may be more prevalent in autistic individuals with co-occurring ADHD. This knowledge can inform more precise hiring and placement strategies.
4. Self-perception and support: Given that autistic individuals reported more creative achievements but did not differ in creative self-efficacy, support may be needed to help autistic individuals recognize and appreciate their creative strengths.
5. ADHD recognition: The study highlights the importance of recognizing and assessing ADHD in autistic individuals, as it may contribute to specific strengths and abilities.
6. Research practices: Future autism research should routinely consider and control for co-occurring conditions, particularly ADHD, to avoid attributing characteristics to autism that may be due to other factors.
7. Public understanding: These findings can help reshape public perceptions of autism and creativity, promoting a more nuanced understanding of neurodevelopmental conditions and their associated strengths and challenges.

Strengths

This study had several methodological strengths, including:

• Large sample size with well-matched autistic and non-autistic groups
• Use of multiple creativity measures, including both performance-based and self-report
• Consideration of general cognitive ability and ADHD
• Preregistered study design and analysis plan
• Use of both frequentist and Bayesian statistical approaches
• Robustness checks and replication of analyses with more stringent inclusion criteria
• Involvement of autistic adults in study development, following participatory research guidelines

Limitations

This study also had several methodological limitations, including:

• Reliance on self-reported diagnoses and traits for autism and ADHD
• Potential lack of representation of autistic individuals with co-occurring intellectual disabilities
• Use of only verbal divergent thinking tasks, which may not capture all aspects of creativity
• Cross-sectional design, limiting causal inferences
• Lack of data on race, ethnicity, and gender identity
• Potential self-selection bias in the online recruitment process

References

Primary reference

Taylor, E. C., Gocłowska, M. A., Callan, M. J., & Livingston, L. A. (2025). Enhanced creativity in autism is due to co-occurring attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.Journal of Psychopathology and Clinical Science. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000910

Other references

Best, C., Arora, S., Porter, F., & Doherty, M. (2015). The relationship between subthreshold autistic traits, ambiguous figure perception and divergent thinking. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 45(12), 4064-4073. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-015-2518-2

Hoogman, M., Stolte, M., Baas, M., & Kroesbergen, E. (2020). Creativity and ADHD: A review of behavioral studies, the effect of psychostimulants and neural underpinnings. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 119, 66-85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.09.029

Jankowska, D. M., Omelańczuk, I., Czerwonka, M., & Karwowski, M. (2019). Exploring links between creative abilities, creative personality and subclinical autistic traits. Personality and Individual Differences, 142, 226-231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2018.05.008

Socratic Questions

1. How might the results of this study change our understanding of the relationship between neurodevelopmental conditions and creativity?
2. What are the potential ethical implications of attributing enhanced creativity to autism when it may be more closely associated with ADHD?
3. How could the methodology of this study be improved to address some of its limitations?
4. In what ways might the findings of this study impact the self-perception of autistic individuals, both with and without co-occurring ADHD?
5. How could future research build upon these findings to further explore the nuances of creativity in neurodevelopmental conditions?
6. What challenges might arise in implementing the implications of this study in clinical, educational, or occupational settings?
7. How might the results of this study inform our broader understanding of the heterogeneity within autism spectrum disorders?
8. What are the potential consequences of not accounting for co-occurring conditions in autism research, as highlighted by this study?
9. How could the findings of this study be applied to develop more targeted and effective interventions for enhancing creativity in neurodivergent individuals?
10. In what ways might societal perceptions of autism and ADHD change as a result of research like this study?