So-called attention deficit is misdirected attention, not absence of attention

Evidence

If being distracted is in no way equivalent to not being attentive, but simply being attentive to something else, then we can better understand why attentional problems are often described simultaneously in terms of deficit and hyperactivity. It seems paradoxical: either there is a lack or an excess. We might think we can resolve the problem by situating the paradox in a temporal succession: at one moment the child is inattentive, and, the next, over-attentive. But the truth is more complex, and more interesting: the child is both not attentive enough to the echoes that we would like him to repeat and excessively attentive to other echoes from which we would like to distract him. — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 513

Categorization

• XREF: Resonates with the Frankfurt School’s critique of attention as socially directed rather than naturally lacking. — connects to: Attention deficit disorders partly reflect unhealthy attention environments — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 258; Children’s inattention often reflects unlistenable teaching, not distraction — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 260; Concern about attention span misdirects effort from recovering deeper attentional modes (+3 more)
• QUESTION: What would ADHD research look like if reframed as misdirected attention rather than deficit? Does any empirical work follow this track?

Broader Connections

• Children’s inattention often reflects unlistenable teaching, not distraction #corroborates (0.85) — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 260
• Attention is diverse cognitive engagement, not narrow focus #corroborates (0.80) — The Friends of Attention, Attensity!, 496
• Attention deficit disorders partly reflect unhealthy attention environments #qualifies (0.75) — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 258
• Attention disorders confer perceptual advantages that misaligned perspectives obscure in others #expands (0.75) — Yves Citton, The Ecology of Attention, 525
• Concern about attention span misdirects effort from recovering deeper attentional modes #corroborates (0.70)
• Attention is socially and materially mediated, not just a scarce mental resource #expands (0.70) — Annual Review of Anthropology contributors (⚠ verify author line), The Political Economy of Attention, 26