ABSTRACT
Chapter 2 introduces different studies on examinations of deviant child behaviour, diverse explanations of the emergence of ADHD, and research on the medicalization of behaviour. These descriptions of ADHD represent traditions within psychiatry, sociology, history, and psychology, and illustrate how mental illness must be understood within its scholarly, social, and cultural context. Scholars remain divided over the legitimacy of ADHD and while some see ADHD as a genuine disorder with a long history, others consider the diagnosis as a form of social control. The chapter describes some of the premises behind the current discussions about the status of psychiatric diagnoses and how ADHD became an official diagnostic category.
