AUTHOR=Carta Alessandra , Vainieri Isabella , Rommel Anna-Sophie , Zuddas Alessandro , Kuntsi Jonna , Sotgiu Stefano , Adamo Nicoletta 

TITLE=Temperament Dimensions and Awakening Cortisol Levels in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2022.803001

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2022.803001

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=Objective: To investigate whether the temperament dimensions Effortful Control (EC), Surgency-Extravertion (SE) and Negative Affectivity (NA) are associated with ADHD and how they relate to awakening cortisol levels, as a proxy measure of peripheral arousal.
Methods: Parent-rated temperament and saliva samples were collected for 55 youths with ADHD, and 65 age-matched controls. 
Results:  Relative to controls, youths with ADHD showed lower EC, higher NA  and lower awakening cortisol levels, but did not differ in SE. A similar pattern of findings emerged in dimensional analyses linking temperament traits to inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms. Results remained unchanged when controlling for the presence of co-occurring opposition-defiance and anxiety traits as well as medication status. Temperament dimensions were not associated with cortisol levels.  
Conclusions: Poor temperamental emotional and cognitive self-regulation show significant associations with ADHD, but do not appear to be linked to the under-arousal typically seen in ADHD.