Keith McBurnett, a professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco, and co-author of several papers on sluggish cognitive tempo, says:
“ When you start talking about things like daydreaming, mind-wandering, those types of behaviors, someone who has a son or daughter who does this excessively says, ‘I know about this from my own experience.’ They know what you’re talking about. ”
Yet some experts, including Dr. McBurnett and some members of the journal’s editorial board, say that there is no consensus on the sluggish cognitive tempo (SCT) new disorder’s specific symptoms, let alone scientific validity. They warn that the concept’s promotion without vastly more scientific rigor could expose children to unwarranted diagnoses and prescription medications — problems that A.D.H.D. already faces.
Dr. Allen Frances, an emeritus professor of psychiatry at Duke University, says:
“ We’re seeing a fad in evolution: Just as A.D.H.D. has been the diagnosis du jour for 15 years or so, this is the beginning of another. This is a public health experiment on millions of kids.”
Sources and more information
- Idea of New Attention Disorder Spurs Research, and Debate, nytimes, APRIL 11, 2014.
- Sluggish cognitive tempo: the ADHD-like disorder that explains daydreaming?, theguardian, 15 April 2014.
- Talk:Sluggish cognitive tempo, wikipedia.