Concurrent Validity of the Tower Tasks as Measures of Executive Function in Adults: A Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Executive function refers to a variety of behaviors and abilities related to planning and strategy use, as well as to the maintenance of attention and behavior in the pursuit of some goal. Many instruments have been designed for the purpose of assessing executive function, and the tower tasks represent a specific group of measures commonly used in the assessment of this construct. This review and meta-analysis examines the theoretical and psychometric basis for the use of the various tower tasks in neuropsychological assessment of adults. Neuroimaging and electrophysiological evidence are consistent with theoretical hypotheses of frontal involvement (e.g., planning and strategy use) in tower task performance. Further, adults with various disorders of presumed neurological basis demonstrate impaired performance on tower tasks. Implications for the use of tower tasks in practice and research are discussed.

Key words:

• adulthood
• assessment
• executive function
• frontal lobes
• tower tasks

A previous version of this paper was presented at the annual meeting of the National Academy of Neuropsychology, October 2006, San Antonio, TX.

Notes

^a Based on data from initial testing session; ^b Based on active task.

¹Only those variables included in at least two studies were included in the meta-analysis. SD = standard deviation.

^a Active task at baseline. CVA = Cerebral Vascular Accident; TBI = Traumatic Brain Injury.

^a Complex trials—ES averaged across 4-, 5-, 6- move items; ALS = Amyuotrophic lateral sclerosis; DAT = Dementia Alzheimer's Type.

^a Averaged across problem difficulty. OCD = Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

MA = Mental Age; MR = Mental Retardation.

Note: This paper was accepted under the editorship of Cecil R. Reynolds.