

Sometimes the participant is asked to repeat the sequence of digits backward. Usually, the examiner reads a list of numbers, and the participant repeats them until an incorrect answer is given ( Blackburn, 1957).

The test was originally designed to test working memory and attention, as part of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale. The Digit Sequencing or Digit Span test is one of the main tools developed to measure one’s verbal working memory. It’s accepted that the verbal working memory consists of the phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad. From recalling a phone number to learning a new language, the verbal working memory is a leading factor in people’s cognitive functioning. That’s not surprising: the verbal working memory plays a crucial role in one’s everyday life. Verbal working memory has been a primary focus of research. Note that usually, working memory is measured via three scales: Arithmetic, Digit Span, and Letter-Number Sequencing ( Lovett et al., 2011). Our working memory is a complicated system that allows us to process new stimuli while using old information at the same time ( Conway et al., 2005). Balances, Scales and Weighing Equipment.Performance validity assessment processing speed psychometrics working memory. Overall, results indicated that embedded WAIS-IV WMI and PSI are useful embedded PVTs in conditions in which cognitive impairment is not expected however, these embedded PVTs demonstrated questionable utility among patients with cognitive impairment due to poor sensitivity, if adequate specificity is maintained, suggesting limited efficacy among patients with cognitive impairment due to risk of false-positive classification. Further, notably reduced sensitivities of 16-28% (≥91% specificity) were found for the remaining significant indices. In contrast, for patients with cognitive impairment, Digit Span, Arithmetic, WMI, and Coding were nonsignificant, and AUCs of.66-.67. When the sample was subdivided by cognitive impairment status, AUCs of.68-.87 and 36-56% sensitivity (≥87% specificity) for detecting invalidity at cut-scores that maximized accuracy were found among those without cognitive impairment. Among the patients with valid performance, 54% were cognitively impaired, whereas 46% were cognitively unimpaired.Īmong the overall sample, performance on WMI, PSI, and 3/4 constituent subtests (i.e., Digit Span, Symbol Search, Coding) was significantly worse among the invalid group compared to the valid group ( η p 2 =.06-.16) with areas under the curve (AUCs) of.67-.76 and 24-32% sensitivity (≥88% specificity) for identifying invalid performance at cut-scores that maximized accuracy. The sample was composed of 85 patients with valid neuropsychological performance and 25 with invalid performance based on multiple independent criterion PVTs. This cross-sectional study examined data from a mixed clinical neuropsychiatric sample of 110 patients referred for outpatient evaluation. This cross-sectional study examined multiple performance validity tests (PVTs) embedded in the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-IV (WAIS-IV) Working Memory (WMI) and Processing Speed (PSI) Indices for detecting invalid test performance. Validity indicators embedded within standard neuropsychological tests have received increasing attention as more efficient measures for sampling performance validity throughout an evaluation.
