Among more than 16,000 working adults who participated in a Norwegian study, workers considered "workaholics" showed symptoms of four psychiatric disorders.

The study was co-authored by researchers from Nottingham Trent University and Yale University.

  • 32.7 percent of those considered workaholics showed signs of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), versus 12.7 percent among adults not considered workaholics.
  • 25.6 percent of workaholics had symptoms of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), versus 8.7 percent of non-workaholics.
  • 33.8 percent of workaholics showed symptoms of anxiety, versus 11.9 percent of non-workaholics.
  • 8.9 percent of workaholics showed symptoms of depression, versus 2.6 percent of non-workaholics.

Researchers used seven diagnostic criteria to classify workers as workaholics; if someone met four or more of the criteria, he or she was considered a workaholic.

  • Thinking of how to free up more time to work
  • Spending more time working than intended
  • Working in order to avoid feelings of guilt, anxiety, helplessness or depression
  • Being told by others to work less but not listening to them
  • Becoming stressed when prohibited from working
  • Prioritizing work over hobbies, leisure and/or exercise on a regular basis
  • Working so much that health is negatively affected

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Fulton DA Fani Willis (center) with Nathan J. Wade (right), the special prosecutor she hired to manage the Trump case and had a romantic relationship with, at a news conference announcing charges against President-elect Donald Trump and others in Atlanta, Aug. 14, 2023. Georgia’s Supreme Court on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, upheld an appeals court's decision to disqualify Willis from the election interference case against Trump and his allies. (Kenny Holston/New York Times)

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