The dimension of focussed attention: relationship to behavior and cognitive functioning in children

A sample of 73 nonreferred school children were administered a newly developed Visual Focussed-attention Test along with other measures of attentional, cognitive, and behavioral functioning. Internal reliability and construct validity for the test were established. Children were then divided into underfocussed (distractible, n = 6), normofocussed (n = 38), and overfocussed (n = 5) groups based upon their test scores. The three groups did not differ with regard to age, intellectual functioning, or academic achievement. However, the underfocussed and overfocussed groups contained a greater proportion of behaviorally disturbed children than the normofocussed group. Underfocussed children, as a group, were rated higher than normofocussed, but not higher than overfocussed children on the Hyperactivity factor of the Conners Teacher Questionnaire. The significance of these focussed attention deficits is reviewed in relation to the more familiar concepts of distractibility and hyperactivity.