Embedded Performance Validity on the CVLT-C for Youth with Neurological Disorders.

Embedded validity measures can screen for possible noncredible performance, but there is a paucity of literature with youth who have neurological disorders. The purpose of this study is to examine the California Verbal Learning Test, Children's Version (CVLT-C) recognition discriminability (RD) score as an embedded validity marker in a sample of youth with neurological diagnoses. Youth between 5-16 years old (N = 294; mean age = 11.3, SD = 3.4) completed the CVLT-C and the Test of Memory Malingering (TOMM). Overall, 5.4% (n = 16) scored below the established cutoff on the TOMM; they were younger, had lower intellectual abilities, and worse performance on nearly all CVLT-C scores than those who scored above the TOMM cutoff. Using the CVLT-C RD score of z ≤ -0.5 (Baker et al. 2004), our sample had a sensitivity = .81 and specificity = .67. Using z ≤ -3.0 provided sensitivity at .44 with specificity at .90. A lower cutoff score of z ≤ -3.0 for CVLT-C RD is necessary in youth with neurological diagnoses.