Utility of an abbreviated questionnaire to identify individuals with ADHD at risk for functional impairments

ObjectiveTo discern whether a subset of items from the 99-item Current Behavior Scale (CBS) of behaviorally defined Executive Function Deficits (EFDs) in adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) can identify a group at risk for poor outcome.MethodsSubjects were 200 adults with ADHD participating in a family study of ADHD in adults. Factor analysis was used to reduce the number of items in the 99-item CBS.ResultsThe one factor solution provided eight items with factor loadings above 0.70. This abbreviated set of items was highly correlated with the 99-item CBS (0.91) and was similarly related to functional outcomes compared to the 99-item CBS (average correlation of 0.30 versus 0.32).ConclusionFor adults with ADHD, a set of eight empirically-derived from the CBS similarly correlated with negative outcomes compared to the 99-item CBS, raising the possibility of utilization as a mechanism for identification of EFDs in adults with ADHD.