Daydream a lot? Feel sluggish? Stare into space? You might have cognitive disengagement syndrome

By Sofia Barbosa Boucas, Brunel University London

Do you find that you daydream a lot? Are you often sluggish and tend to disengage easily when doing a task? You might have cognitive disengagement syndrome, or CDS.

CDS was first described by psychologists in the 1960s and 1970s when they noticed that some people display these traits more persistently than others. But why is it considered a syndrome rather than just a quirky personality trait?

The distinction lies in the effect. For people with CDS, their behaviour significantly interferes with their daily lives, academic performance and social interactions.

While everyone daydreams occasionally, those with CDS find it hard to stay focused on tasks for extended periods. This isn’t just about being inattentive or lazy, CDS is a persistent pattern that can disrupt a person’s ability to succeed in various areas of life.

Unlike attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which includes hyperactivity and impulsivity, CDS is characterised by its “sluggish cognitive tempo” – an earlier name for the condition.

The condition is not recognised as a distinct “attention disorder” in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the standard classification of mental disorders used by professionals in the US. However, the growing body of research suggests that it deserves more attention and should be looked at separately from ADHD.

A way to look at the two is, if a person has ADHD, they are able to focus on something but they will probably become distracted and switch their focus to something else. If a person has CDS, they are unable to focus in the first place.

How do we identify CDS?

Diagnosis is tricky because there are no official criteria. However, some psychologists use a combination of questionnaires and behavioural observations to assess symptoms like frequent daydreaming, mental fogginess and slow processing speed.

Parents and teachers often report this behaviour in children who seem “out of it” or who take longer to respond to questions and complete tasks.

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