NIH EXAMINER: conceptualization and development of an executive function battery

Abstract

Executive functioning is widely targeted when human cognition is assessed, but there is little consensus on how it should be operationalized and measured. Recognizing the difficulties associated with establishing standard operational definitions of executive functioning, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke entered into a contract with the University of California-San Francisco to develop psychometrically robust executive measurement tools that would be accepted by the neurology clinical trials and clinical research communities. This effort, entitled Executive Abilities: Measures and Instruments for Neurobehavioral Evaluation and Research (EXAMINER), resulted in a series of tasks targeting working memory, inhibition, set shifting, fluency, insight, planning, social cognition and behavior. We describe battery conceptualization and development, data collection, scale construction based on item response theory, and lay the foundation for studying the battery's utility and validity for specific assessment and research goals.

Figure 1

Example of Dimensional Set Shifting. Examinees are instructed to match by shape, hence the correct response is the blue rectangle.

Figure 2

Example of Unstructured Task stimuli. Although the puzzle on the left offers more points, the puzzle on the right offers a better benefit:cost ratio because it can be completed much more quickly.