It has been claimed that the Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain and actors James Dean and Clark Gable all shared a developmental disorder that helped their talents to flourish.

Their name feature amongst a list of names of notable achievers, with all displaying attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms.

Others who also made a name for themselves, even while had the developmental disorder were: Mark Twain, Jules Verne, guerilla leader Che Guevara, Oscar Wilde, Lord Byron, Picasso and Sir Walter Raleigh.

According to Professor Michael Fitzgerald from Trinity College, Dublin, they all owe their success to risk taking genes, which play a key role in ADHD.

Fitzgerald says those who have ADHD, often have a capacity to hyper-focus on a narrow area of particular interest to them, which in Cobain’s case was writing music, adding that even so, ADHD should not be taken as a guarantee of genius.

However, in the right circumstances, it can be compared to a fertilizer that helps generate a seed of potential.

ADHD disorder, one of the most common behavioural problems causes restlessness, impulsiveness and inattentiveness, amongst children.