ABSTRACT
Medicalization is understood as the process by which daily situations are individualized and transformed into medical problems. Higher Education has been the target of medicalizing practices, especially in relation to Attention Deficit Disorder with/without Hyperactivity (ADHD) and Dyslexia, since there is no consensus about the existence of these supposed disorders. In this regard, the general objective was to know and to analyze Dyslexia and ADHD technical reports used for entry to Higher Education through Cultural-Historical Theory contributions. Technical reports of candidates presented to the sector responsible for selection processes at the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU), between 2003 and 2016, were examined. There were 809 applications, 96 candidates with reports for dyslexia and/or ADHD, 42 females and 54 males, 34 candidates with intention for Medical school. The number of requests increased between 2003 and 2016, as well as the use of medication; 32 candidates used methylphenidate hydrochloride. In this sense, we ask ourselves if diagnoses and medications have been used to facilitate entry to higher education. In addition, it is necessary to rethink the special attention given to candidates with dyslexia and ADHD reports and to deconstruct these supposed pseudodiagnoses, since they culminate in the proliferation of reports, increase in drug consumption and, consequently, contribute to the process of life medicalization.
Keywords:
Medicalization; higher education; cultural-historical theory