Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-dzt6s Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T12:47:23.088Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Development of a Contextualized Version of the Multiple Errands Test for People with Substance Dependence

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 October 2017

Carlos Valls-Serrano ,
Antonio Verdejo-García ,
Xavier Noël  and
Alfonso Caracuel
Carlos Valls-Serrano*
Affiliation:
Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), Faculty of Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Murcia, Murcia, Spain
Antonio Verdejo-García
Affiliation:
Institute of Neuroscience F. Olóriz and Department of Personality, Assessment and Psychological Treatment, University of Granada, Granada, Spain Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neurosciences, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
Xavier Noël
Affiliation:
Psychological Medicine Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
Alfonso Caracuel
Affiliation:
Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), Faculty of Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to: Carlos Valls-Serrano, Mind, Brain and Behavior Research Center (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Campus Cartuja, s/n, Granada, CP: 18071. E-mail: cvalls@ucam.edu
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background: Substance dependence is associated with deficits in several areas of executive functioning, such as planning and multitasking. Traditional tests of executive functioning have been criticized for their low ecological validity. Shallice and Burgess (1991) developed the Multiple Errands Test (MET), where participants are required to perform multiple tasks in a real-world setting. In this study, we aimed to adapt the MET for use in populations with substance dependence. Objectives: This study aimed to: (1) examine the applicability of a contextualized version of the Multiple Errands Test, namely, the Multiple Errands Test – Contextualized Version (MET-CV); (2) study the testing context reliability and convergent validity of MET-CV scores; (3) compare the performance of people with substance dependence to a control group. Methods: Data were collected from 60 participants with substance dependence and 30 healthy controls. Both groups performed a neuropsychological assessment, which consisted of the MET-CV and traditional neuropsychological tests (Letter Number Sequencing, Zoo Map Test, Revised Strategy Application Test, Information Sampling Test, Stockings of Cambridge). Results: The MET-CV has adequate testing context reliability and moderate convergent validity relative to traditional planning measures. People with substance dependence (PWSD) showed significant deficits in executive function tests compared to healthy controls, most notably on the MET-CV rather than on traditional neuropsychological tests. Conclusions: The MET-CV can be feasibly applied in the context of therapeutic communities treatment in PWSD. The MET-CV showed adequate reliability and validity, and detected planning deficits in PWSD. (JINS, 2018, 24, 347–359)

Keywords

Multiple Errands TestEcological validitySubstance dependencePlanningMultitaskingExecutive functions
Type
Research Articles
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 24 , Issue 4 , April 2018 , pp. 347 - 359
Copyright
Copyright © The International Neuropsychological Society 2017 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Alderman, N., Burgess, P.W., Knight, C., & Henman, C. (2003). Ecological validity of a simplified version of the multiple errands shopping test. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 9(1), 31–44.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Baars, M.A.E., Nije Bijvank, M., Tonnaer, G.H., & Jolles, J. (2015). Self-report measures of executive functioning are a determinant of academic performance in first-year students at a university of applied sciences. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 1131. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01131 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blakesley, R.E., Mazumdar, S., Dew, M.A., Houck, P.R., Tang, G., Reynolds, C.F., && Butters, M.A. (2009). Comparisons of methods for multiple hypothesis testing in neuropsychological research. Neuropsychology, 23(2), 255–264. doi: 10.1037/a0012850 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brand, M., Roth-Bauer, M., Driessen, M., & Markowitsch, H.J. (2008). Executive functions and risky decision-making in patients with opiate dependence. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 97(1-2), 64–72. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2008.03.017 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bulzacka, E., Delourme, G., Hutin, V., Burban, N., Méary, A., Lajnef, M., & Schürhoff, F. (2016). Clinical utility of the Multiple Errands Test in schizophrenia: A preliminary assessment. Psychiatry Research, 240, 390–397. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2016.04.056 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Burgess, P.W., Alderman, N., Forbes, C., Costello, A., Coates, L.M.-A., Dawson, D.R., & Channon, S. (2006). The case for the development and use of «ecologically valid» measures of executive function in experimental and clinical neuropsychology. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 12(2), 194–209. doi: 10.1017/S1355617706060310 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Burgess, P.W., Veitch, E., de Lacy Costello, A., & Shallice, T. (2000). The cognitive and neuroanatomical correlates of multitasking. Neuropsychologia, 38(6), 848–863.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Caletti, E., Paoli, R.A., Fiorentini, A., Cigliobianco, M., Zugno, E., Serati, M., & Altamura, A.C. (2013). Neuropsychology, social cognition and global functioning among bipolar, schizophrenic patients and healthy controls: Preliminary data. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 7, 661. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00661 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
CANTAB (Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery). (2004). Cambridge Cognition. Cambridge: Cambridge Cognition, Ltd.Google Scholar
Cuberos-Urbano, G., Caracuel, A., Valls-Serrano, C., García-Mochón, L., Gracey, F., & Verdejo-García, A. (2016). A pilot investigation of the potential for incorporating lifelog technology into executive function rehabilitation for enhanced transfer of self-regulation skills to everyday life. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, doi: 10.1080/09602011.2016.1187630 Google ScholarPubMed
Cuberos-Urbano, G., Caracuel, A., Vilar-López, R., Valls-Serrano, C., Bateman, A., & Verdejo-García, A. (2013). Ecological validity of the Multiple Errands Test using predictive models of dysexecutive problems in everyday life. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 35(3), 329–336. doi: 10.1080/13803395.2013.776011 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Diamond, A. (2011). Biological and social influences on cognitive control processes dependent on prefrontal cortex. Progress in Brain Research, 189, 319–339. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-444-53884-0.00032-4 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fernández-Serrano, M.J., Perales, J.C., Moreno-López, L., Pérez-García, M., & Verdejo-García, A. (2012). Neuropsychological profiling of impulsivity and compulsivity in cocaine dependent individuals. Psychopharmacology, 219(2), 673–683. doi: 10.1007/s00213-011- 2485-z CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fernández-Serrano, M.J., Pérez-García, M., & Verdejo-García, A. (2011). What are the specific vs. generalized effects of drugs of abuse on neuropsychological performance? Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 35(3), 377–406. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2010.04.008 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fishbein, D.H., Krupitsky, E., Flannery, B.A., Langevin, D.J., Bobashev, G., Verbitskaya, E., & Tsoy, M. (2007). Neurocognitive characterizations of Russian heroin addicts without a significant history of other drug use. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 90(1), 25–38. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2007.02.015 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Flannery, B., Fishbein, D., Krupitsky, E., Langevin, D., Verbitskaya, E., Bland, C., & Zvartau, E. (2007). Gender differences in neurocognitive functioning among alcohol–dependent Russian patients. Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research, 31(5), 745–754. doi: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2007.00372.x CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Frisch, S., Förstl, S., Legler, A., Schöpe, S., & Goebel, H. (2012). The interleaving of actions in everyday life multitasking demands. Journal of Neuropsychology, 6(2), 257–269. doi: 10.1111/j.1748-6653.2012.02026.x CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Goel, V. (2010). Neural basis of thinking: Laboratory problems versus real‐world problems. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Cognitive Science, 1(4), 613–621.Google ScholarPubMed
Gonzalez, C.L.R., Mills, K.J., Genee, I., Li, F., Piquette, N., Rosen, N., & Gibb, R. (2014). Getting the right grasp on executive function. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 285. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00285 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gonzalez, R., Bechara, A., & Martin, E.M. (2007). Executive functions among individuals with methamphetamine or alcohol as drugs of choice: Preliminary observations. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 29(2), 155–159. doi: 10.1080/13803390600582446 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Hair, J.F., Black, W.C., Babin, B.J., Anderson, R.E., & Tatham, R.L. (2000). Multivariate data analysis, 5th ed. Madrid: Prentice Hall [in Spanish].Google Scholar
Jansari, A., Agnew, R., Akesson, K., & Murphy, L. (2004). The use of virtual reality to assess and predict real-world executive dysfunction: Can VR help for work-placement rehabilitation? Brain Impairment, 5(1), 110.Google Scholar
Kaller, C.P., Unterrainer, J.M., Rahm, B., & Halsband, U. (2004). The impact of problem structure on planning: Insights from the Tower of London task. Brain Research. Cognitive Brain Research, 20(3), 462–472. doi: 10.1016/j.cogbrainres.2004.04.002 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kaufman, A.S., Kaufman, N.L., & American Guidance Service. (1990). K-BIT: Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test, Circle Pines: American Guidance Service.Google Scholar
Knight, C., Alderman, N., & Burgess, P.W. (2002). Development of a simplified version of the multiple errands test for use in hospital settings. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 12(3), 231–255. doi: 10.1080/09602010244000039 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Köstering, L., Stahl, C., Leonhart, R., Weiller, C., & Kaller, C.P. (2014). Development of planning abilities in normal aging: Differential effects of specific cognitive demands. Developmental Psychology, 50(1), 293–303. doi: 10.1037/a0032467 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Krabbendam, L., de Vugt, M.E., Derix, M.M., & Jolles, J. (1999). The behavioural assessment of the dysexecutive syndrome as a tool to assess executive functions in schizophrenia. The Clinical Neuropsychologist, 13(3), 370–375. doi: 10.1076/clin.13.3.370.1739 Google ScholarPubMed
Laloyaux, J., Michel, C., Mourad, H., Bertrand, H., Domken, M.-A., Van der Linden, M., & Larøi, F. (2012). Performance on an everyday life activity in persons diagnosed with alcohol dependency compared to healthy controls: Relations between a computerized shopping task and cognitive and clinical variables. Alcohol and Alcoholism (Oxford, Oxfordshire), 47(3), 240–247. doi: 10.1093/alcalc/ags014 CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lamberts, K.F., Evans, J.J., & Spikman, J.M. (2010). A real-life, ecologically valid test of executive functioning: The executive secretarial task. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 32(1), 56–65. doi: 10.1080/13803390902806550 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lawrence, A.J., Luty, J., Bogdan, N.A., Sahakian, B.J., & Clark, L. (2009). Problem gamblers share deficits in impulsive decision-making with alcohol-dependent individuals. Addiction (Abingdon, England), 104(6), 1006–1015. doi: 10.1111/j.1360–0443.2009.02533.x CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lawton-Craddock, A., Nixon, S.J., & Tivis, R. (2003). Cognitive efficiency in stimulant abusers with and without alcohol dependence. Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research, 27(3), 457–464. doi: 10.1097/01.ALC.0000056620.98842.E6 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Levine, B., Dawson, D., Boutet, I., Schwartz, M.L., & Stuss, D.T. (2000). Assessment of strategic self-regulation in traumatic brain injury: Its relationship to injury severity and psychosocial outcome. Neuropsychology, 14(4), 491–500.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
López-Ibor, J.J. (1996). I.P.D.E. Examen internacional de los trastornos de la personalidad. Organización Mundial de la Salud, Madrid: Meditor.Google Scholar
Loranger, A.W., Sartorius, N., Anfreoli, A., Berger, P., Buchheim, P., & Channabasa-vanna, S.N. (1994). The International Personality Disorder Examination. The World Health Organization/Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Administration international pilot study of personality disorders. Archives of General Psychiatry, 51, 215–224.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Manes, F., Villamil, A.R., Ameriso, S., Roca, M., & Torralva, T. (2009). «Real life» executive deficits in patients with focal vascular lesions affecting the cerebellum. Journal of the Neurological Sciences, 283(1-2), 95–98. doi: 10.1016/j.jns.2009.02.316 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Miyake, A., Friedman, N.P., Emerson, M.J., Witzki, A.H., Howerter, A., & Wager, T.D. (2000). The unity and diversity of executive functions and their contributions to complex «Frontal Lobe» tasks: A latent variable analysis. Cognitive Psychology, 41(1), 49–100. doi: 10.1006/cogp.1999.0734 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Moriyama, Y., Mimura, M., Kato, M., Yoshino, A., Hara, T., Kashima, H., & Watanabe, A. (2002). Executive dysfunction and clinical outcome in chronic alcoholics. Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research, 26(8), 1239–1244. doi: 10.1097/01.ALC.0000026103.08053.86 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Morrison, M.T., Giles, G.M., Ryan, J.D., Baum, C.M., Dromerick, A.W., Polatajko, H.J., && Edwards, D.F. (2013). Multiple Errands Test-Revised (MET-R): A performancebased measure of executive function in people with mild cerebrovascular accident. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 67(4), 460–468. doi: 10.5014/ajot.2013.007880 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ornstein, T.J., Iddon, J.L., Baldacchino, A.M., Sahakian, B.J., London, M., Everitt, B.J., && Robbins, T.W. (2000). Profiles of cognitive dysfunction in chronic amphetamine and heroin abusers. Neuropsychopharmacology, 23(2), 113–126. doi: 10.1016/S0893-133X(00)00097-X CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pitel, A.L., Beaunieux, H., Witkowski, T., Vabret, F., de la Sayette, V., Viader, F., & Eustache, F. (2008). Episodic and working memory deficits in alcoholic Korsakoff patients: The continuity theory revisited. Alcoholism, Clinical and Experimental Research, 32(7), 1229–1241. doi: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2008.00677.x CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rand, D., Basha-Abu Rukan, S., Weiss, P.L.T., & Katz, N. (2009). Validation of the Virtual MET as an assessment tool for executive functions. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 19(4), 583–602. doi: 10.1080/09602010802469074 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Roca, M., Torralva, T., Meli, F., Fiol, M., Calcagno, M., Carpintiero, S., & Correale, J. (2008). Cognitive deficits in multiple sclerosis correlate with changes in fronto-subcortical tracts. Multiple Sclerosis (Houndmills, Basingstoke, England), 14(3), 364–369. doi: 10.1177/1352458507084270 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schulte, M.H.J., Cousijn, J., den Uyl, T.E., Goudriaan, A.E., van den Brink, W., Veltman, D.J., & Wiers, R.W. (2014). Recovery of neurocognitive functions following sustained abstinence after substance dependence and implications for treatment. Clinical Psychology Review, 34(7), 531–550. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2014.08.002 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Shallice, T. (1982). Specific impairments of planning. Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences, 298(1089), 199–209.Google ScholarPubMed
Shallice, T., & Burgess, P.W. (1991). Deficits in strategy application following frontal lobe damage in man. Brain, 114(Pt 2), 727–741.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Shallice, T., & Burgess, P.W. (1993). Supervisory control of action and thought selection. In A. Baddeley & L. Weiskrantz (Eds.), Attention: Selection, awareness and control: A tribute to Donald Broadbent (pp. 171–187). Oxford: Clarendon Press.Google Scholar
Shallice, T., & Evans, M.E. (1978). The involvement of the frontal lobes in cognitive estimation. Cortex, 14, 294–303.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Taylor, M., Mackay, K., Murphy, J., McIntosh, A., McIntosh, C., Anderson, S., && Welch, K. (2012). Quantifying the RR of harm to self and others from substance misuse: Results from a survey of clinical experts across Scotland. BMJ Open, 2(4). doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2011-000774.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. (2016). World drug report 2016. Retrieved from http://www.unodc.org/doc/wdr2016/WORLD_DRUG_REPORT_2016_web.pdf CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Holst, R.J., & Schilt, T. (2011). Drug-related decrease in neuropsychological functions of abstinent drug users. Current Drug Abuse Reviews, 4(1), 42–56.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Verdejo-García, A. (2017). Neuroclinical assessment of addiction needs to incorporate decision-making measures and ecological validity. Biological Psychiatry, 81, e53–e54.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Verdejo-García, A., Betanzos-Espinosa, P., Lozano, O.M., Vergara-Moragues, E., González-Saiz, F., Fernández-Calderón, F., & Pérez-García, M. (2012). Self-regulation and treatment retention in cocaine dependent individuals: A longitudinal study. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 122(1-2), 142–148. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2011.09.025 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Verdejo-García, A.J., López-Torrecillas, F., Aguilar de Arcos, F., & Pérez-García, M. (2005). Differential effects of MDMA, cocaine, and cannabis use severity on distinctive components of the executive functions in polysubstance users: A multiple regression analysis. Addictive Behaviors, 30(1), 89–101. doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2004.04.015 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Verdejo-García, A., & Pérez-García, M. (2007). Ecological assessment of executive functions in substance dependent individuals. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 90(1), 48–55. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2007.02.010 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wechsler, D. (1997). Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, 3rd ed. Madrid: Tea Editions.Google Scholar
Wilson, B.A., Alderman, N., Burgess, P.W., Emslie, H., & Evans, J.J. (1996). Behavioural Assessment of the Dysexecutive Syndrome. Bury St Edmunds: Thames Valley Test Company.Google Scholar
Zorko, M., Marusic, A., Cebasek-Travnik, Z., & Bucik, V. (2004). The frontal lobe hypothesis: Impairment of executive cognitive functions in chronic alcohol in-patients. Psychiatria Danubina, 16(1-2), 21–28.Google ScholarPubMed