Comprehensive trail-making test: gender and ethnic differences for ages 8 to 18 years old

There is increasing concern for possible gender and ethnic differences on neuropsychological measures. The purpose of this study was to examine gender and ethnicity differences on the Comprehensive Trail-Making Test (CTMT) with a focus on individuals from 8 to 18 years of age. From the standardization sample, this included 251 boys and 306 girls with a mean age of 12.76 years (SD = 3.07 years) and who were predominantly White (81.51%). Only those participants who completed all five tasks that comprise the CTMT were considered; participants representing special groups were excluded. For ethnic group, no significant differences emerged; for gender, significant differences emerged; and no interaction effects for sex by ethnicity were found. Further, no differences based on ethnicity were found. Implications and possible explanations for this difference for practice and additional research are discussed.