A Temporal Measure of Attention in Schizophrenia and its Clinical Significance

¹ Psychologist, Clinical Psychopharmacology Service, Bronx State Hospital, 1500 Waters Place, Bronx, New York 10461, U.S.A.
² Director, Clinical Psychopharmacology Service, Bronx State Hospital, and Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York 10461, U.S.A.

The Span of Attention Test was developed as a temporal measure of concentration and distractibility for studies with schizophrenics. The evaluation is determined by the average length of time one sustains attention at a routine motor task. Because the measure is not dependent on perceptual skills or short-term memory it is considered appropriate for studying the role of attention in cognitive dysfunction. The clinical value of the test was investigated by administration to 66 schizophrenic patients and 23 non-psychotic adults. Cross-sectional analyses found the test to distinguish between schizophrenics and non-schizophrenics, and between paranoid and non-paranoid schizophrenics, and revealed significant correlations with indices of distractibility, arousal, and withdrawal. Longitudinal study showed the test to be a reliable instrument that monitors the differential course of chronic vs. sub-acute and acute schizophrenics and may have prognostic significance for schizophrenic thought disorder.

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