Fractal fluctuations in exploratory movements predict differences in dynamic touch capabilities between children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and typical development

Children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) struggle to perform a host of daily activities. Many of these involve forceful interaction with objects and thus implicate dynamic touch. Therefore, deficits in dynamic touch could underlie functional difficulties presented by ADHD children. We investigated whether performance on a dynamic touch task (length perception by wielding) differ between children with ADHD and age-matched controls. We further examined whether this difference could be explained by fractal temporal correlations (wielding dynamics). Forty-two children (ADHD: 21; typically developing: 21) wielded unseen wooden rods and reported their perceived length in the form of magnitude productions. The rods varied in the magnitude of the first principal moment of inertia (I(1)). Three-dimensional displacements of hand and rod positions were submitted to Detrended Fluctuation Analysis to estimate trial-by-trial temporal correlations. Children with ADHD reported shorter length for rods with higher I(1) than their typically developing peers, indicative of reduced sensitivity to mechanical information supporting dynamic touch. Importantly, temporal correlations in wielding dynamics moderated children’s usage of I(1.) This finding points to a role of exploratory movements in perceptual deficits presented by children with ADHD and, thus, should be considered a new potential target for interventions.