Factor-Analytic Evidence for the Complexity of the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS)

This study examined the complexity of the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System both in terms of the overall number of factors needed to model the entire battery and the complexity of the number of factors needed to model individual tests. The correlations between tests from the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System standardization sample were modeled with varying numbers of factors. Simulations of test scores were also done that varied the number of factors used to generate the data and considered criteria for factor retention based on eigenvalues, fit indices, and generalization to new data. The results show seven-factor solutions based on generalization of fixed weights to validation samples provided best estimates. Modification indices produced three seven-factor solutions with comparable model fit but markedly different factor loadings. These results are consistent with process overlap theory, which suggest that complex tests are determined my many distinct executive processes. Given uncertainty of factor-analytic solutions, interpretation of the meaning of test scores should be based on evidence that is external to the test items, such as their sensitivity to clinical conditions. Overly simplistic interpretations of executive test performance based on factor-analytic results are not warranted. This is consistent with the cognitive processing approach of the test authors.