Those who suffer from attention deficit disorder with or without hyperactivity (ADHD) find it difficult to direct their emotions in order to solve challenges or problems. This alteration in emotional self-regulation implies greater disability than that attributed to the traditional dimensions -attention deficit and hyperactivity- with an evident impact on the development of personality.

The confluence of poor self-regulation skills, emotion awareness and autonomy, and a temperament profile with a higher novelty seeking and lower persistence increase the risk of children diagnosed with ADHD for the development of a series of adjustment and adaptation problems in childhood and adolescence.