(PS1-B46) Gender and Perceived Acceptability of Stimulant Medication to Address ADHD in College Students

Little research has focused on the knowledge and acceptability of stimulant medication ADHD treatment for people with ADHD, even though it is a common intervention. A better appraisal of these things might help practitioners to appreciate challenges to treatment efficacy and suggest focal needs for psychoeducation along demographic lines (e.g., gender). For instance, more accurate knowledge regarding stimulant medication has been associated with more optimistic attitudes about their efficacy (Scuttio, 2015), which might influence treatment adherence.
 

In the current study, 314 undergraduate students were recruited through the psychology research participant pool at a large public university. The participants tended to be female (84.1%) and White (84.7%). The ADHD Knowledge Quiz (KQ; Bramham et al., 2009) was used to assess the level of knowledge that participants had regarding ADHD, using true/false questions concerning etiology, behavior and symptoms, assessments of value, and other features of ADHD. The Medication Treatment subscale of the Treatment Acceptability Questionnaire (TAQ; Krain et al., 2005) was adapted to evaluate the perceived acceptability of prescription stimulant medication use (PSMU) for ADHD.
 

Despite cisgender men (M = 15.48, SD = 1.46) and women (M = 15.33, SD = 1.89) having similar KQ mean scores, women found PSMU for ADHD to be more acceptable overall compared to men (women TAQ M = 50.81, SD = 11.87; men TAQ M = 46.38, SD = 15.40). Specifically, men were found to be significantly less accepting of PMSU in their responses to 4 TAQ questions. These included (a) this is an acceptable treatment for someone with ADHD behavior, t(312) = -3.797, p < 0.001, (b) this treatment should be effective in changing someone with ADHD’s behavior, t(312) = -3.585, p < 0.001, (c) I would be willing to use this treatment if I had ADHD, t(312) = -2.067, p = 0.04, and (d) I like or support this treatment, t(312) = -2.193, p = 0.029.
 

Men are not only less accepting of PMSU when compared to women, but, at face value, they also think PMSU is ineffective and would not use it themselves if they had ADHD. These results align with previous research on the acceptability of mental health treatment among cisgender men. Men often underuse mental health services due to stigma and masculinity norms associated with Western culture (Chatman, 2020). These findings could spotlight that college men with ADHD who could potentially benefit from stimulant medication may not be as compliant with, or receptive to, prescriptions from their medical providers. While psychoeducation regarding the possible benefits and side effects of a psychoactive prescription is always indicated, providers may want to especially emphasize this with adult males, particularly men in college.