Can self-reported behavioral scales assess executive function deficits? A controlled study of adults with ADHD.
One of the suspected sources of negative outcomes associated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been a deficit in executive functions (EFD). Although self-report questionnaires purport to assess behavioral concomitants of EFDs, little is known about their informativeness. The aim was to examine the association between self-reported behavioral concomitants of EFDs and functional outcomes among adults with ADHD. Subjects were adults with (N = 200) and without (N = 138) DSM-IV criteria for ADHD. The Current Behavior Scale (CBS) was used as a proxy for EFDs. The 50th percentile of the ADHD subjects' total CBS scores explained the most variance in the functional outcomes compared with other cutoffs, and it identified subjects with more impaired global functioning, more comorbidities, and lower socioeconomic status. Scores on the CBS above the 50th percentile identify adults with ADHD at significantly higher risk for functional morbidity beyond that conferred by the diagnosis of ADHD alone.
Biederman
Joseph
J
Pediatric Psychopharmacology and Adult ADHD Program, Psychiatry Department, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts 02114, USA. biederman@helix.mgh.harvard.edu
Petty
Carter R
CR
Fried
Ronna
R
Fontanella
Jessie
J
Doyle
Alysa E
AE
Seidman
Larry J
LJ
Faraone
Stephen V
SV
D000328:Adult; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D015897:Comorbidity; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012307:Risk Factors; D012923:Social Class; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires