Evaluation of the general sensitivity of the Wisconsin card sorting test among younger and older children

Abstract

Although the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) has been widely used to evaluate the cognitive effects of cerebral dysfunction, particularly of the frontal lobes, among adult populations, it has received little attention among children. To evaluate the general sensitivity of the WCST in this group, the present study compared the WCST performances of a heterogeneous sample (n = 77) of younger children (94 to 119 months of age) and older children (120 to 189 months of age) who were referred for neuropsychological evaluation on clinical grounds with the WCST performances of age‐appropriate controls (n = 80). Five measures derived from the standard WCST were examined, and the results revealed significant (p < .005) main effects of group and age for each of the WCST variables; no interactions were observed. These findings suggest that although WCST performance is age‐dependent, its sensitivity is not restricted by age; that is, it is still possible to identify differences in level of skill at older and younger age levels. These data provide preliminary support for the potential clinical utility of the WCST as a general measure of cognitive functioning among children, although they do not address the issue of the possible sensitivity of the test to frontal lobe pathology or to manifest disability. It is hoped that these data will encourage researchers to explore further the potential utility of the WCST in the neuropsychological evaluation of preadolescents.