Degree Date

10-2021

Document Type

Dissertation - Public Access

Degree Name

Psy.D. Doctor of Clinical Psychology

Academic Discipline

Clinical Psychology

First Advisor

Peter Dodzik, PsyD, ADPdN, ABN

Second Advisor

Kelsey Oster, PsyD

Abstract

The Test of Everyday Attention for Children (TEA-Ch) is a commonly used, UK-normed test to assess diverse attentional capacities in children and adolescents. Currently, there is insufficient evidence for the diagnostic utility of the TEA-Ch with ADHD in a U.S. population. The focus in this study was to investigate the relationship between the TEA-Ch scores test authors found to be most sensitive to ADHD in UK samples as well as the relationship of TEA-Ch scores to other measures typically used in the diagnosis of ADHD, including rating scales. Archival and prospective analyses of 121 subjects with mixed-clinical/ADHD diagnoses (ages 6–16; M = 10.32, SD = 2.70; 86 male) were conducted with a sample obtained from a private practice in Illinois. All subjects were administered the TEA-Ch as part of a neuropsychological evaluation. Both the ADHD and clinical groups scored in the impaired range (16th percentile or below) at a higher-than-expected rate for the following subtests: Sky Search (Time-Per-Target and Attention scores), Score!, Sky Search DT, and Walk, Don’t Walk. The ADHD group scored in the impaired range more often than expected on Score DT whereas the clinical group did not. The following subtests showed statistically significant differences in scores between the ADHD and non-ADHD groups: Score! (p = .04), Score DT (p = .04), and Walk, Don’t Walk (p < .01). Results indicate Score DT promises the best diagnostic utility in differentiating between an ADHD and clinical population. Furthermore, the clinical group performed in the impaired range at a higher-than-expected rate on five of the seven TEA-Ch scores examined, demonstrating the TEA-Ch may be sensitive to attentional deficits seen in other clinical disorders.

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