VSVT Sample Report

Victoria Symptom Validity Test

by Daniel Slick, PhD, Grace Hopp, MA

& Esther Strauss, PhD, and PAR Staff

Score Report/Interpretive Guide

-Client Information-

	Client Name: Sample Report	Complaints of Memory Dysfunction: Yes
	ID Number: 123-45-6789-0	Possible Litigation: Yes
	Date of Testing: 10/13/1997	Date of Injury: 01/01/1997
	Date of Birth: 10/28/1965	Loss of Consciousness (LOC): Yes
	Age: 31	Duration of LOC: 2 hours
	Gender: Male	Length of Post Traumatic Amnesia: 2 days
	Education:	Results of Neuroimaging:
	Reported Ethnicity:	Setting:
	Marital Status:	Previous Head Injury:
		Previous Testing:
		Sensory/Motor Impairments:
		Other Neurological/Medical Disorders:

This report is designed to assist in the interpretation of performance on the Victoria Symptom Validity Test (VSVT). The VSVT provides one measure of the level of effort expended on test-taking by clients referred for psychological or neuropsychological evaluations.

The VSVT and other forced-choice tests are often referred to as "symptom validity tests," rather than "malingering tests," because unusually poor performance may reflect poor effort, deliberate feigning, exaggeration of real cognitive deficits, factors independent of conscious dissimulation and external rewards, or any combination of the above. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to recognize that VSVT scores are, at best, capable of indicating that factors other than cognitive impairment may be influencing a clientís performance. Even in cases where financial or other incentives exist and where performance on the VSVT is in the questionable range, the client may be legitimately impaired, acting without conscious intent, or a combination of both.

The clinician using the VSVT should be knowledgeable about the research and ethical issues related to assessing symptom validity. Considerable caution and good judgment should be exercised when interpreting the results of symptom validity tests such as VSVT due to the potentially serious implications of results suggesting less than optimal effort. The clinician is strongly encouraged to employ additional measures to assess effort and motivation whenever the clientís VSVT performance raises concerns about the level of effort expended during an evaluation. More reliable and accurate conclusions about a clientís motivation and effort can best be made through the use of multiple assessment instruments and additional sources of information.

VSVT Summary Scores

		Binomial	Suggested
Items Correct score	Raw score	p value	interpretation
Easy Items Correct	20/24	0.9999	Valid
Difficult Items Correct	13/24	0.7294	Questionable
Total Items Correct	33/48	0.9972	Valid

Note. Raw scores indicate the number of items correct/maximum number of items in the category.

Between-Group Comparisons: Items Correct Scores

					Comparison Groups
	Client		Control	Feigning		Comp	Non-comp
Items Correct score	(n = 1)		(n = 95)	(n = 43)		(n = 205)	(n = 32)
Easy Items Correct	20	M	23.97	20.30		23.33	23.53
		SD	0.18	4.35		1.96	1.19

Difficult Items Correct	13	M	23.44	10.95		20.17	22.63
		SD	0.92	6.06		4.80	1.79

Total Items Correct	33	M	47.41	31.26		43.50	46.16
		SD	0.92	9.05		6.08	2.59

Note. Comp = Compensation-seeking; Non-comp = Non-compensation seeking.

Descriptive Statistics for Response Latency Variables

		Classification
Response Latency scores (seconds)	Valid (above chance)	Questionable (at chance)	Invalid (below chance)
Easy Items
M	1.67	2.84	3.40
SD	0.73	1.45	1.02
95% Confidence Interval	1.58 - 1.77	2.26 - 3.42	2.81 - 3.99

Difficult Items
M	2.68	5.50	4.70
SD	1.28	3.44	1.67
95% Confidence Interval	2.52 - 2.85	4.11 - 6.89	3.73 - 5.67

Note. Number of respondents within the three classification groups are as follows: Valid (n = 135); Questionable (n = 20); and Invalid (n = 15).

Between-Group Comparisons: Response Latency

				Comparison Groups
Response Latency scores (seconds)		Client	Control	Feigning	Comp	Non-comp
Response Latency scores (seconds)		(n = 1)	(n = 95)	(n = 43)	(n = 205)	(n = 32)
Easy Items
	M	0.78	1.29	2.48	2.06	1.61
	SD	0.36	0.37	1.05	1.04	0.53

Difficult Items
	M	0.87	1.93	4.08	3.45	2.61
	SD	0.47	0.51	2.12	2.02	1.11

Total Items
	M	0.82	1.61	3.28	2.76	2.11
	SD	0.42	0.41	1.43	1.45	0.80

Note. Comp = Compensation-seeking; Non-comp = Non-compensation seeking.

Item Scores for Block 1

	Response accuracy
	Correct	Incorrect	Item type		Response Latency (seconds)
Item 1	X		Easy		0.88
Item 2	X		Easy		0.66
Item 3		X		Difficult	1.15
Item 4	X		Easy		0.77
Item 5	X		Easy		0.55
Item 6	X			Difficult	0.88
Item 7	X			Difficult	0.76
Item 8	X		Easy		1.04
Item 9	X			Difficult	0.66
Item 10		X	Easy		0.93
Item 11		X		Difficult	1.05
Item 12	X			Difficult	1.76
Item 13		X	Easy		1.48
Item 14	X		Easy		0.71
Item 15	X			Difficult	0.98
Item 16		X		Difficult	1.21

Score Totals for Block 1 (16 items)

Easy Items Correct = 6		Easy Items Response Latency = 0.88
Difficult Items Correct = 5		Difficult Items Response Latency = 1.06
Total Items Correct = 11		Total Items Response Latency = 0.97

Note. Retention interval for Block 1 was 5 seconds.

Item Scores for Block 2

	Response accuracy
	Correct	Incorrect	Item type		Response Latency (seconds)
Item 1		X	Easy		1.48
Item 2	X			Difficult	2.04
Item 3	X		Easy		1.26
Item 4		X		Difficult	0.88
Item 5	X		Easy		0.99
Item 6		X		Difficult	0.65
Item 7	X		Easy		0.77
Item 8	X			Difficult	0.55
Item 9	X		Easy		1.04
Item 10	X		Easy		0.61
Item 11	X			Difficult	1.10
Item 12	X			Difficult	0.38
Item 13		X	Easy		0.49
Item 14	X		Easy		0.22
Item 15		X		Difficult	0.00
Item 16		X		Difficult	0.17

Score Totals for Block 2 (16 items)

Easy Items Correct = 6		Easy Items Response Latency = 0.86
Difficult Items Correct = 4		Difficult Items Response Latency = 0.72
Total Items Correct = 10		Total Items Response Latency = 0.79

Note. Retention interval for Block 2 was 10 seconds.

Item Scores for Block 3

	Response accuracy
	Correct	Incorrect	Item type		Response Latency (seconds)
Item 1	X			Difficult	1.10
Item 2	X			Difficult	1.26
Item 3	X		Easy		0.66
Item 4	X		Easy		0.60
Item 5	X			Difficult	0.50
Item 6		X		Difficult	0.60
Item 7	X		Easy		0.71
Item 8		X		Difficult	1.04
Item 9		X		Difficult	1.21
Item 10	X		Easy		1.21
Item 11	X		Easy		0.55
Item 12	X			Difficult	0.60
Item 13	X		Easy		0.66
Item 14		X		Difficult	0.33
Item 15	X		Easy		0.22
Item 16	X		Easy		0.16

Score Totals for Block 3 (16 items)

Easy Items Correct = 8		Easy Items Response Latency = 0.60
Difficult Items Correct = 4		Difficult Items Response Latency = 0.83
Total Items Correct = 12		Total Items Response Latency = 0.71

Note. Retention interval for Block 3 was 15 seconds.

Score Totals for Blocks 1-3 (48 items)

Easy Items Correct = 20		Easy Items Response Latency = 0.78
Difficult Items Correct = 13		Difficult Items Response Latency = 0.87
Total Items Correct = 33		Total Items Response Latency = 0.82

Right-Left Preference score: 0.13

(Scores < -0.6 indicate an extreme left-side preference; scores > 0.6 indicate an extreme right-side preference)