Biological correlates of learning and attention: what is relevant to learning disability and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder?

Advances in the related fields of cognitive neuroscience and neuropsychology offer intriguing reformulations of the clinical entities of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and learning disabilities (LD). The definition of such terms as attention and learning used in cognitive neuroscience differ from their use in clinical practice and emphasize such processes as intention, working memory, and executive function. Research suggests that neither attention nor long-term memory are the critical cognitive correlates of ADHD or LD. Rather, encoding processes, particularly working memory, are identified as deficiencies for children with these conditions. Furthermore, intention and inhibition appear to be particularly impaired in children with ADHD, who exhibit broader deficits in so-called executive function. Findings from cognitive neuroscience offer explanations of the neuroanatomical and neurophysiological underpinnings of learning problems and the frequent comorbidity of LD and ADHD.