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Abstract Background The Attention Network test (ANT) gives measures of different aspects of the complex process of attention. We ask if children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) will show a characteristic pattern of deficits on this test. Methods The sample included 157 children (M = 10 years) who performed the child version of ANT as participants of the Bergen Child Study. Children with an ADHD diagnosis (N = 45) were compared to a group of children with other diagnoses (N = 55) and a group of children without any diagnosis (N = 57). Results The group of children with ADHD showed low accuracy scores and a variable response set, indicating an inattentive response style. No differences were found between the groups on RT and accuracy measures of the alerting, orienting, and conflict networks. A high correlation between full scale IQ (FSIQ) and ANT measures was only found in the ADHD group. When FSIQ score was included as a covariate, the group differences were not statistically significant on any ANT measure. Conclusion The present study showed that accuracy and variability measures rather than measures of the three attention networks conveyed the characteristic pattern of deficits in children with ADHD. The results emphasized the importance of including these measures to extend the sensitivity of the ANT, and the importance of reporting results both with and without FSIQ as a covariate.

Objectives: Discrepant findings of age-related effects between cross-sectional and longitudinal studies on executive function (EF) have been described across different studies. The aim of the present study was to examine longitudinal age effects on inhibition and switching, two key subfunctions of EF, calculated from results on the Color Word Interference Test (CWIT). Methods: One hundred twenty-three healthy aging individuals (average age 61.4 years; 67% women) performed the CWIT up to three times, over a period of more than 6 years. Measures of inhibition, switching, and combined inhibition and switching were analyzed. A longitudinal linear mixed effects models analysis was run including basic CWIT conditions, and measures of processing speed, retest effect, gender, education, and age as predictors. Results: After taking all predictors into account, age added significantly to the predictive value of the longitudinal models of (i) inhibition, (ii) switching, and (iii) combined inhibition and switching. The basic CWIT conditions and the processing speed measure added to the predictive value of the models, while retest effect, gender, and education did not. Conclusions: The present study on middle-aged to older individuals showed age-related decline in inhibition and switching abilities. This decline was retained even when basic CWIT conditions, processing speed, attrition, gender, and education were controlled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Attention Network test (ANT) gives measures of different aspects of the complex process of attention. We ask if children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) will show a characteristic pattern of deficits on this test. Methods: The sample included 157 children (M = 10 years) who performed the child version of ANT as participants of the Bergen Child Study. Children with an ADHD diagnosis (N = 45) were compared to a group of children with other diagnoses (N = 55) and a group of children without any diagnosis (N = 57). Results: The group of children with ADHD showed low accuracy scores and a variable response set, indicating an inattentive response style. No differences were found between the groups on RT and accuracy measures of the alerting, orienting, and conflict networks. A high correlation between full scale IQ (FSIQ) and ANT measures was only found in the ADHD group. When FSIQ score was included as a covariate, the group differences were not statistically significant on any ANT measure. Conclusion: The present study showed that accuracy and variability measures rather than measures of the three attention networks conveyed the characteristic pattern of deficits in children with ADHD. The results emphasized the importance of including these measures to extend the sensitivity of the ANT, and the importance of reporting results both with and without FSIQ as a covariate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Memory complaints following minor head injury or whiplash are common and often bear similarity to absentmindedness or action slips (Reason, 1979). We replicated Reason's study by asking 189 healthy volunteers to keep diaries of their action slips for a week. The mean number of slips was 6.4 (SD = 4.9). Perceived stress did not correlate with number of slips but there was a weak positive correlation between action slips and scores on a memory failures questionnaire. Memory diaries may be clinically useful when assessing individuals who worry about cognitive sequelae of minor injuries. Diaries clarify the nature of the complaints and may have therapeutic value by demonstrating that the memory slips are less frequent than estimated by the patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]