Executive functioning in college students: evaluation of the Dutch executive function index (EFI-NL)

The Executive Function Index (EFI) is a short self-report questionnaire for the assessment of executive functions (EF) as encountered in daily life. The aim of the present study is to examine the psychometric properties of the Dutch version of the EFI (EFI-NL) in a college student sample (N = 376). Internal structure was analyzed using a principal components analysis with varimax rotation, followed by parallel analysis. This resulted in a five-factor solution accounting for 44.3% of the variance. Cronbach's alpha was acceptable for the EFI total score (alpha = 0.73), but internal scale consistencies were lower, ranging from 0.41 to 0.69. In comparison with the original United States sample both similarities and differences emerged. Although the five-factor structure as found in the U.S. sample did not provide a completely adequate fit for the present data, several equivalent factors were found. The (cross-cultural) differences were discussed against the background of possible disturbing factors, such as gender, age, and educational level. In general, the results lend support for the use of the EFI-NL as a self-report measure. However, replication of the factor structure and scale results in different samples is needed to disentangle the differential effects of age, gender, and item translation.