FSEM 100W9 | Is ADHD a Superpower?

THIS COURSE HAS CURRENTLY FILLED FOR FALL 2025.

While ADHD has often been understood as a disorder that individuals must overcome in order to be successful, some researchers have begun to examine how ADHD traits can be the source of great creativity and innovation. This course will explore a variety of perspectives concerning ADHD within academic disciplines as well as in popular sources to consider the implications of seeing ADHD as a disorder, a difference, or a superpower.

This course will be especially useful for students who either have ADHD themselves, love someone with ADHD, or are considering pursuing careers in education, psychology, or health sciences. Our required texts will include podcasts, YouTube videos, and other contemporary media, alongside popular and scholarly articles. Students will have the opportunity to pursue their own interests within the larger focus on ADHD.

Photo of Kate Haffey, Professor of English

Kate Haffey, Professor of English

I developed this course because several years ago I was diagnosed, well into adulthood, with ADHD. Since then, I have been hyper focused on learning everything I can about the topic. In my research, I have discovered how often ADHD is missed in girls and women because the symptoms can present differently based on gender. I have also realized that though my ADHD can be a hurdle in some instances, it has also enabled me to develop unique problem-solving skills and approach my own career with curiosity and creativity.

I am an English professor by training, specializing in 20th and 21st century literature, and I also teach courses in UMW’s Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies major. I’ve been a faculty member at Mary Washington for eleven years. Like many people with ADHD, I have dozens of hobbies including gardening, record collecting, downhill skiing, weightlifting, camping, and hiking. I also play guitar and love video games, especially The Last of Us and anything Legend of Zelda related, and I have three cats.

Image Credit: ADHD Super Powers Written on Chalkboard by Tara Winstead, free to use .