Investigating OCD, ADHD, and Autistic Traits as Predictors of Maladaptive Daydreaming

Maladaptive daydreaming (MD) is an urge-driven mental activity characterized by excessive, immersive daydreaming that disrupts daily life and leads to functional distress. However, MD is not formally recognized in diagnostic manuals, and urgent work is required to better understand its conceptualization and underlying mechanisms. MD has been linked to various mental health and neurodevelopmental conditions, including obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism. Yet, disentangling their individual contributions to MD remains challenging due to their frequent co-occurrence. This study investigated whether OCD, ADHD, and autistic traits significantly predicted MD traits and examined their relative contributions, while accounting for their co-occurrence. An adult sample ( N = 294) completed self-report trait measures of OCD, ADHD, autism, and MD. Multiple regression analyses indicated that both OCD and ADHD traits, but not autistic traits, significantly predicted MD traits, with ADHD traits being the strongest predictor. Further analyses identified two subcomponents of OCD (obsessing, neutralizing) and both subcomponents of ADHD (inattention, hyperactivity) as significant predictors of MD traits. These findings suggest that OCD and, particularly, ADHD are more central to understanding the development of MD, providing insights into potential shared mechanisms that could inform future assessments and interventions for MD. Lay Abstract Maladaptive daydreaming (MD) is characterized by a strong urge to create vivid, immersive stories in one's mind. As these daydreams can be highly absorbing and engaging, they can interfere with daily life and often lead to distress. MD has not yet been recognized as a clinical condition, and more research is needed to better understand the mental processes that drive this condition. MD has been linked with other conditions, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism. These three conditions often occur together, making it unclear which one influences people's level of MD the most. To better understand these relationships, we recruited 294 adults and statistically examined how traits typical of OCD, ADHD, and autism contribute to MD, while accounting for the overlap between these conditions. We found that ADHD traits were the most strongly linked to people's level of MD, and there was a weaker association between OCD traits and level of MD. In contrast, people's autistic traits did not predict their level of MD. Looking at the data more closely, we found that both ADHD traits associated with inattention and those linked to hyperactivity/impulsivity were related to people’s level of MD. When it came to OCD, only traits related to obsessing and those linked to neutralizing were associated with MD. This study provides new insights into MD and highlights potential characteristics that may contribute to this behavior. Crucially, our work helps to improve our understanding of MD as a condition and informs future assessment and interventions for MD.