Carmen Keith Conners (March 20, 1933 – July 5, 2017) was an American psychologist, best known for establishing the first standards for the diagnosis of

attention deficit hyperactivity disorder Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by symptoms of inattention, hyperactivity, impulsivity, and emotional dysregulation that are excessive and pervasive, impairing in multiple con ...

(ADHD). Conners was born on March 20, 1933, in

Bingham Canyon, Utah Bingham Canyon was a city formerly located in southwestern Salt Lake County, Utah, United States, in a narrow canyon on the eastern face of the Oquirrh Mountains. The Bingham Canyon area boomed during the first years of the twentieth century, ...

, one of three children of Michael Conners, a machinist, and Merle Conners, who worked in a department store. He earned degrees from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

(BA),

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

(MA), and

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

(PhD). Conners is credited by many as putting ADHD on the map in the USA and helped develop early assessments for ADHD, including the

Conners Comprehensive Behaviour Rating Scale The Conners Comprehensive Behaviour Rating Scale (CBRS), is a tool used to gain a better understanding of academic, behavioural and social issues that are seen in young children between ages 6 to 18 years old. It is frequently used to assist in th ...

. In later years, he raised concerns about the high rates of diagnosis of ADHD in the United States as compared to Europe, and suggested that ADHD may be diagnosed too frequently in the US. He believed the true rates of childhood ADHD were 2-3%. Conners died on July 5, 2017, in

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

, aged 84.

References

1933 births 2017 deaths People from Bingham Canyon, Utah People from Durham, North Carolina 20th-century American psychologists University of Chicago alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni 21st-century American psychologists Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder researchers {{US-psychologist-stub