Construct validity of the continuous attention test for children.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the construct validity of the Continuous Attention Test for Children (the CAT), a clinical measure of vigilance. To examine convergent and discriminant validity, a multitrait-multimethod matrix was used. It was predicted that the CAT would correlate with other neuropsychological measures involving vigilance, but not with measures involving potential confounds (e.g., short-term memory). Participants were 47 children, aged 6 to 11, referred for neuropsychological assessment. Results partially supported discriminant validity, but convergent validity was weak. That is, findings suggest that the CAT measures an ability distinct from those assessed by some other popular tests involving vigilance. However, method-related confounds may remain. The CAT appears to add useful information in the context of clinical evaluations.