Predictive value of performance validity testing and symptom validity testing in psychoeducational assessment.

Using archival data from 2463 psychoeducational assessments of postsecondary students we investigated whether failure on either symptom or performance validity tests (SVTs or PVTs) was associated with score differences on various cognitive, achievement, or executive functioning performance measures or on symptom report measures related to mental health or attention complaints. In total, 14.6% of students failed one or more PVT, 33.6% failed one or more SVT, and 41.6% failed at least one validity test. Individuals who failed SVTs tended to have the highest levels of self-reported symptoms relative to other groups but did not score worse on performance-based psychological tests. Those who failed PVTs scored worse on performance-based tests relative to other groups. Failure on at least one PVT and one SVT resulted in both performance and self-reported symptoms suggestive of greater impairment compared with those who passed all validity measures. Findings also highlight the need for domain-specific SVTs; failing ADHD SVTs was associated only with extreme reports of ADHD and executive functioning symptoms while failing mental health SVTs related only to extreme reports of mental health complaints. Results support using at least one PVT and one SVT in psychoeducational assessments to aid in diagnostic certainty, given the frequency of non-credible presentation in this population of postsecondary students.

The impact of depression and anxiety on speed of academic performance and retrieval fluency in postsecondary students.

Objective: This study evaluated the functional effects of severe mental health symptoms on speed of academic performance to assist clinicians and educators in determining whether extra time accommodations are evidence-based for students with such diagnoses. Method: Using archival data from 1476 post-secondary students, we examined the performance of students with existing mental health diagnoses who were also reporting extremely high levels of symptoms. Their performance on timed academic achievement and cognitive processing measures was compared with performance of students with learning disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and clinical controls. Students failing stand-alone performance validity and/or symptom validity measures were excluded from this investigation. Results: Students diagnosed with anxiety and/or depression did not differ from clinical controls on any timed performance measure, typically performing academic tasks within a normal amount of time. By contrast, those with reading disabilities were typically the slowest on all academic tasks. Conclusion: Across the range of timed tests, students with mental health diagnoses did not show functional impairments in tests with a speed component. As such, they would not typically require increased time to perform speeded academic tasks, but they might require alternative accommodations in their post-secondary programmes in order to participate equally.