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Updated: Sep 25, 2026
Assessment and Communication for People with Disorders of Consciousness
Published on: August 1, 2017
Breaking it down: Component scores improve the classification accuracy of the Denver Attention Test
Sarah J Schneider1, Vanessa Correia1, Klara Csaszar2
1Department of Psychology, University of Windsor, Windsor, ON, Canada.
Objective:
The Denver Attention Test (DAT) is a novel free-standing performance validity test (PVT) with limited research. This study was designed to replicate the initial validation study and explore the utility of alternate metrics.
Method:
The DAT was administered to 71 adults. Classification accuracy was calculated using the Word Memory Test as the criterion PVT.
Results:
A total accuracy ≤41 had .53 sensitivity at .92 specificity; total completion time ≥157" had .27 sensitivity at .92 specificity. Accuracy cutoffs across individual trials (≤12, ≤13 and ≤14) produced similar classification accuracy (.47-.60 sensitivity at .92 specificity). Failing any of these cutoffs correctly classified 85% of the sample (.67 sensitivity at .90 specificity). Finally, increasing reaction times across trials and forgetting curves were associated with invalid performance (.07-.40 sensitivity at .90-.98 specificity). Chance level responding on individual trials was associated with multiple at or even below chance scores on other PVTs in a case study.
Conclusions:
The DAT is a cost-effective and psychometrically robust free-standing PVT. Incorporating data from its individual components can enhance its clinical utility. More research is needed to consolidate the evidence base on its classification accuracy across samples with different demographics and clinical characteristics and using multiple criterion PVTs.
