Shifting focus: Changing representations of ADHD in US news media

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) has attracted significant public interest and controversy. The present study examines the changing representations of the condition through a computational analysis of media coverage. In a comprehensive sample of 63,963 US news media articles from 1990 to 2025, we used natural language processing methods to evaluate shifts in the meaning of ADHD on three dimensions of semantic change: the positive or negative sentiment associated with ADHD, the emotional intensity associated with it, and its semantic breadth or expansiveness. In addition, we related these shifts to historical changes in the cultural salience of the condition and identified specific thematic changes. Consistent with predictions, the meaning of ADHD broadened over the study period as its salience rose. Contrary to expectation, ADHD's local lexical contexts became less positively valenced and more emotionally arousing, although these trends began to reverse in the late 2010s. Over time, ADHD became less associated with childhood and more associated with clinical terminology and other mental health conditions. Our findings point to a growing problematization of ADHD in recent decades. Implications of the findings for the evolving public representation of ADHD are discussed.