Mental health content has taken over our FYPs in recent years, with creators highlighting symptoms and personal experiences that many of us can relate to. But new research confirms much of this content — like ADHD videos on TikTok — might not be as accurate as it seems.
In fact, international researchers found the most trending videos are turning into a pool of misinformation, with less than half of the claims about ADHD symptoms in the top 100 TikTok videos aligning with clinical standards.
Explaining the research published on Thursday, Vasileia Karasavva — a PhD student at the University of British Columbia and one of the report’s authors — said the researchers were inspired by their experiences scrolling through the minefield that is TikTok.
“The second author (Caroline Miller) and I both realized that we had been watching a lot of TikToks about ADHD and started pulling out and showing each other the ones that made us laugh. We were pretty surprised by the bold claims that did not really map on to ADHD at all,” she told PEDESTRIAN.TV.
For example, some of the claims of ADHD ‘symptoms’ included having a sweet tooth or wanting to listen to the same songs on repeat.
“This got us thinking: Were we being shown a lot of TikToks about ADHD because we work in a lab that studies ADHD and the algorithm figured that we are interested in it? Or was that the experience of most people?” she said.
What did the research into ADHD TikToks find?
Jumping into a quick health lesson, ADHD — which stands for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder — is a neurodevelopmental condition characterised by inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity.
It affects both children and adults, impacting focus, organization, and behavior. Treatment can range from medications and lifestyle adjustments to behavioral therapy. Around one in every 20 Australians has ADHD.
In recent years, a growing awareness of the condition has led to more awareness and people diagnosed to get the help they need. But on the flipside, it’s also fueled self-diagnosis and oversimplification, especially on social media.
Karasavva told PEDESTRIAN.TV the research into these TikToks had two phases. First, the researchers looked up the most 100 popular videos with the #ADHD hashtag, where they found most of the claims on symptoms did not meet the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, a.k.a. the global standard.
They then interviewed more than 840 young people who could be described as “chronically online” to see how these videos impacted their perception of ADHD.
It found those either formally or self-diagnosed with ADHD reported watching these TikToks more frequently than others, which kinda makes sense if you think about it.
But here’s the catch — even after considering factors like diagnosis status and demographics, the researchers found those who watched more ADHD TikToks were likely to recommend videos in both the top five and bottom five of the psychologists’ lists. This suggests frequent viewers can have a pretty harder time distinguishing between helpful or misleading content.
Also, as many people might’ve suspected, young people who consume a lot of this content on TikTok tend to overestimate how common it is, per the study.
While only about three to five per cent of adults in Canada — where the researchers are based — have ADHD, the TikTok users who consume more of this content thought around 34 per cent of people might have it, Karasavva pointed out.
Similarly, after asking participants to rate how often they experienced symptoms of ADHD, using a scale from 1 (never) to 5 (always), it became pretty clear those who watched more of this content said they struggled more with ADHD-like symptoms.
“Frequent exposure to TikTok content about ADHD (especially content that includes common behaviors like missing appointments or losing keys, as well as unrelated traits like bumping into things or having specific music preferences) could have led some participants to misattribute these behaviors to ADHD rather than recognizing them as part of typical human experiences,” Karasavva observed.
“Additionally, constantly consuming ADHD-related content that emphasises things like making small mistakes (something we all do from time to time) as clear-cut signs of ADHD might make some more hyperaware of their own minor errors.”
In other words, watching these videos constantly can lead to misunderstandings, with people might start thinking normal, everyday behaviors are somehow signs of ADHD, and they might become more critical of themselves for it.
To be clear, the study wasn’t entirely against ADHD content on social media. It noted platforms like TikTok can shape public understanding and democratise mental health information and the challenges faced by those with ADHD. The key here is being able to identify misattributed behaviours or misleading content that complicates an already challenging differential diagnosis and treatment process.
Monetising ADHD content
Perhaps one of the most surprising findings of this study, according to Karasavva, were the number of content creators who were monetising ADHD content through things like donations, sponsorships, or selling products that supposedly help with symptoms.
“We took a cautious approach in counting these instances. For example, creators with podcasts, or large social media followings likely earning ad revenue were excluded. To us, this suggests that the actual number of creators financially benefiting from ADHD content is likely even higher than we reported,” she told P.TV.
And while some of these products or requests could be legitimate, this huge wave of creators raises questions about the commercialization of ADHD content.
After all, access to peer-reviewed research is difficult and expensive for people outside academia, the study pointed out, so anecdotal or first-hand experiences may be more feasible.
“However, the lack of vetting or fact-checking mechanisms could result in the dissemination of inaccurate or misleading information
without accountability,” it noted.
“In sum, while social media platforms like TikTok offer excellent accessibility and opportunities for peer support and personal expression, their design may not always facilitate nuanced, research-based content, leaving room for the propagation of misinformation.”
Karasavva also questioned if viewers are receiving science-backed information or whether they’re being encouraged to purchase items that may not be effective.
“This speaks to the need for greater awareness about the sources of ADHD content and the qualifications of ADHD content creators and whether the goal of their posts is to educate or to generate profit,” she said.
Looking ahead, the study hopes to provide starting point for research exploring how ADHD is portrayed on social media platforms like TikTok, according to Karasavva.
It also hopes for a better understanding on the discrepancies between psychologists’ and young adults’ perceptions that could inform efforts to better serve people with ADHD.
Lead image: TikTok / iStock
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