Research article summary (published 30 Jan 2003):

Utility of the trail making test in the assessment of malingering in a sample of mild traumatic brain injury litigants.

Full Abstract

The Trail Making Test (TMT) is one of the most commonly administered tests in neuropsychological assessments. It has been shown to be a valid indicator of brain damage due to traumatic brain injury (TBI), as well as a number of other neuropathological conditions. TMT error and ratio scores have been suggested as possible markers of malingering. The present study examined the utility of various TMT scores as malingering measures in 94 TBI litigants. Litigants were divided into those suspected of (n = 27) and those not suspected of malingering (n = 67) based on scores obtained on the Test of Memory Malingering and/or the Rey 15-Item Test. TMT errors did not discriminate between suspected and nonsuspected malingerers; however, the overall level of performance on the TMT was suppressed in suspected malingerers. The TMT ratio score was significantly lower in litigants suspected of malingering, although the clinical utility of this ratio is minimal. Results of the present study suggest using caution when interpreting TMT scores as markers of malingering in TBI litigants.

Author information

Author/s: O'Bryant, Sid E (SE); Hilsabeck, Robin C (RC); Fisher, Jerid M (JM); McCaffrey, Robert J (RJ);

Affiliation: University at Albany, State University of New York, Albany, NY 12222, USA. rm188(-atsign-)albany.edu

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Case Reports; Journal Article

Journal: The Clinical neuropsychologist (Clin Neuropsychol), published in Netherlands. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2003-Feb; vol 17 (issue 1) : pp 69-74

Dates: Created 2003/07/10; Completed 2003/09/17; Revised 2007/06/01;

PMID: 12854012, status: MEDLINE (last retrieved date: 2/18/2009)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

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MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MeSH Headings (categories) shown below.

Adult Brain Injuries - complications; diagnosis; psychology Case-Control Studies Disability Evaluation Humans Malingering - classification; diagnosis; etiology; psychology

Memory, Short-Term Middle Aged Psychomotor Performance Reproducibility of Results Sensitivity and Specificity Trail Making Test

Note: Bold headings indicate primary MeSH headings or qualifiers.

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