Publication date: Apr 09, 2026
Neurodevelopmental disorders, especially attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD), have seen a marked rise in public attention, yet research on public opinion remains limited. Social media analysis offers real-time, unfiltered insights into public perceptions, enabling empirical examination of public attitudes and opinions. This study aimed to assess the evolution of public opinion on ADHD and ASD between 2009 and 2023 by analyzing posts from X (formerly known as Twitter; X Corp), comparing perceptions across English and Spanish languages and against other mental health conditions. Posts mentioning keywords related to ADHD and ASD and control conditions (eg, depression, anxiety, insomnia, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, suicide, and substance use disorders) were collected from X between 2009 and 2023. The dataset included posts in both English and Spanish. Machine learning algorithms were then applied to classify post content into predefined categories, including volume of posts, engagement, personal experiences, trivialization, perceived causes, and perceived treatability. Parametric and nonparametric tests were used to assess for differences by language. Descriptive statistics were presented using tables and graphical representations. A total of 852,990 posts were analyzed, including 511,510 (59. 97%) in English and 341,480 (40. 03%) in Spanish. Overall, post volume on mental health conditions increased across the study period. In English, posts about ADHD (97,084/511,510, 18. 98%) and ASD (74,619/511,510, 14. 59%) were among the most frequent, while of the 341,480 Spanish posts, there were 49,475 (14. 49%) ASD posts, significantly outnumbering ADHD posts (n=18,223, 5. 34%; chi-square test P
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Semantics
| Type | Source | Name |
|---|---|---|
| disease | MESH | Autism Spectrum Disorder |
| disease | MESH | Neurodevelopmental disorders |
| disease | MESH | ADHD |
| disease | MESH | anxiety |
| disease | MESH | insomnia |
| disease | MESH | bipolar disorder |
| disease | MESH | schizophrenia |
| disease | MESH | substance use disorders |
| disease | MESH | included |
| disease | MESH | Mental Disorders |