title: Discriminant validity of the Wender Utah Rating Scale for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in adults.
abstract: The authors examined the factor structure and discriminant validity of the Wender Utah Rating Scale (WURS) in adults seeking evaluation for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Three factors (Dysthymia, Oppositional/Defiant Behavior, and School Problems) accounted for 59.4% of the variance. In a stepwise discriminant function analysis, age and childhood school problems emerged as significant variables. The classification procedure correctly classified 64.5% of patients. Among those who did not have ADHD, only 57.5% were correctly classified compared with 72.1% among those with ADHD. The WURS is sensitive in detecting ADHD, but it misclassifies approximately half of those who do not have ADHD.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle 98104-2499, USA.
authors.forename: B S
authors.initials: BS
authors.lastname: McCann
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Scheele
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ward
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Roy-Byrne
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D001519:Behavior; D015897:Comorbidity; D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D006801:Humans; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D015203:Reproducibility of Results