Date of Award

2016

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Psychology

Abstract

The Behavioral Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) is a teacher and parent questionnaire designed to measure executive functioning (EF). Due to the role of EF in ADHD, the BRIEF is often used in assessment of ADHD. The purpose of the current study was to explore the convergence and divergence of the BRIEF with a performance-based measure of EF, behavior rating scales, an observational measure of child behavior during testing, and longer-term academic outcomes. The current study used archival data representing 105 children referred to an ADHD evaluation clinic. It was hypothesized that the BRIEF would be significantly correlated with other rating scales assessing similar and dissimilar constructs (e.g., ADHD and depression) and longer-term goal pursuit, but would not be significantly correlated with a performance-based measure of EF. In addition, it was hypothesized that parent and teacher ratings on the BRIEF would cluster with other rating measures and measures of long-term goal pursuit, whereas the performance-based measure would group with other short-term performance measures (i.e., FSIQ, ratings from an observational measure completed during the assessment). As predicted, the BRIEF correlated with other rating scales (both those assessing ADHD and depression), as well measures of longer-term goal pursuit. Also as predicted, the BRIEF was minimally correlated with the performance-based measure. Factor analyses indicated that measures tended to cluster based on type of measure (i.e., self-report, performance measure). Results of this study provide support for the premise that rating scales and performance-based measures of EF are measuring distinct constructs. Results also suggest that ratings are influenced by source (i.e., parent or teacher) and context. Future research should consider the role of performance-based measures in assessment ADHD in general, as well as the predictive validity of rating scales and performance-based measures in predicting real-world outcomes for children with ADHD.

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