Introduction: Many studies have investigated the symptoms of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. However, there are research gaps about some of the traits that have been attributed to this disorder and their investigation into three subtypes of ADHD. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the comparison of hyperfocus and malevolent creativity in inattentive, hyperactive-impulsive, and combined subtypes of ADHD.

Methods: The present study employed a causal-comparative design. The statistical population included all senior high school students with ADHD symptoms in the schools of Rasht in the academic year 2023-2024, of which 150 adolescents, including 50 participants in each subtype, were selected among this population through purposive sampling. Teachers filled out the Child Symptom Inventory (CSI-4; 1994). Then, students who had the symptoms of ADHD answered the Flow State Questionnaire of the Malevolent Creativity Behavioral Scale (MCBS; 2016) and Positive Psychology Lab (PPL-FSQ; 2013).

Results: The results showed that the rate of hyperfocus was higher in the inattentive subtype than the combined and hyperactive-impulsive subtypes, and it was also higher in the combined subtype than the hyperactive-impulsive subtype (p< 0.05). However, malevolent creativity did not show a significant difference between the three subtypes of ADHD (p> 0.05).

Conclusion: Based on the findings of this study, the rate of malevolent creativity seems to not differ among the subtypes of ADHD. However, hyperfocus is different in each subtype of this disorder, so it requires special solutions for proper guidance of the hyperfocus mode. This finding could help teachers, parents, and therapists better understand each group's attention challenges and provide more appropriate strategies. Researchers could also use the validated questionnaires in this study to examine variables related to malevolent creativity and hyperfocus.