Year of Publication
2016
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Document Type
Master's Thesis
College
Arts and Sciences
Department
Psychology
First Advisor
Dr. David T. R. Berry
Abstract
Due to increased concern about malingered self-report of symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in college students, there is a need for instruments that can detect feigning. The present study provided further validation data for a recently developed validity scale for the Conners’ Adult ADHD Rating Scale (CAARS), the CAARS Infrequency Index (CII). The sample consisted of 139 undergraduate students; 21 individuals with diagnoses of ADHD, 29 individuals responding honestly, 54 individuals responding randomly (full or half), and 35 individuals assigned to malinger. The CII demonstrated modest sensitivity to malingering (.31-.46) and excellent specificity to ADHD (.91-.95). Sequential application of validity scales had correct classification rates of honest (93.1%), ADHD (81.0%), malingering (57.1%), half random (42.3%), and full random (92.9%).
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
http://dx.doi.org/10.13023/ETD.2016.325
Recommended Citation
Walls, Brittany D., "Utility of the CAARS Validity Scales in Identifying Feigned ADHD, Random Responding, and Genuine ADHD in a College Sample" (2016). Theses and Dissertations--Psychology. 96.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/psychology_etds/96