While attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been extensively studied in the past decades, the role of social and cultural practices in assessment, diagnosis and treatment of the syndrome was often overlooked.

The aim of the current paper is to expand existing help-seeking models by acknowledging the influence of socio-cultural factors on ADHD care among children of ethnic minority background and their families.

Retained studies addressed cultural diversity in three areas of ADHD help-seeking process: problem recognition, access to mental health services, and treatment. Special concern was given to treatment selection and adherence in minority groups.

Findings suggested that cultural disparities in ADHD care occur for minority children as early as problem recognition, through service selection, and treatment adherence. Not only that

ADHD and its co-morbid conditions were less likely to be diagnosed in minority than in non-minority children, but minority children were also less likely to be prescribed with stimulants and to adhere with treatment. Rather than ethnic diversity in the prevalence of ADHD symptoms, these differences probably reflect cultural diversity in norms and attitudes towards mental health issues (e.g. fear of social stigma) as well as lower access to qualified health care.

This paper highlights the importance of socio- cultural factors in understanding developmental psychopathology and help-seeking behavior. In addition, it provides additional support to calls for increasing cultural competence in communications during clinical assessment, diagnosis and treatment of minority communities. Clinical, theoretical and methodological considerations for future research are discussed.