What Determines Continuous Performance Task Performance?

The Continuous Performance Task (CPT) is widely used as an indicator of cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia. It is still unclear, however, exactly what this test measures. We examined the contribution of motor speed, reaction time measures, mental effort, and level of psychopathology to the perfo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Schizophrenia bulletin 1996, Vol.22 (4), p.643-651
Main Authors: van den Bosch, Robert J., Rombouts, René P., van Asma, Maria J. O.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Attention
Biological and medical sciences
Cognition Disorders - diagnosis
Cognition Disorders - psychology
Cognitive Impairment
Depressive Disorder - diagnosis
Depressive Disorder - psychology
Diagnosis, Differential
Energy Expenditure
Female
Follow-Up Studies
Human
Humans
Male
Measurement
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Neuropsychological Tests - statistics & numerical data
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychometrics
Psychomotor Performance
Psychopathology
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Psychoses
Reaction Time
Reproducibility of Results
Response Variability
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia - diagnosis
Schizophrenic Psychology
Severity (Disorders)
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The Continuous Performance Task (CPT) is widely used as an indicator of cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia. It is still unclear, however, exactly what this test measures. We examined the contribution of motor speed, reaction time measures, mental effort, and level of psychopathology to the performance on a double-stimulus CPT. This study included schizophrenia patient groups, depressive patient groups, and patient and normal control groups. Subjects were retested twice: once after 1 week and again at 3 months. In patients with schizophrenia or depression, the sensitivity measure (d′) was strongly and consistently associated with motor speed and with the standard deviation of reaction times (response variability) to target stimuli. The association with response variability was also found at followup tests in the control groups. We conclude that in patients with schizophrenia or depression, the sensitivity measure of a double-stimulus CPT is associated with cognitive mechanisms that determine motor proficiency and response variability. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 22(4): 643-651, 1996.
ISSN:0586-7614
1745-1701
DOI:10.1093/schbul/22.4.643