THE DIGIT VIGILANCE TEST - RELIABILITY, VALIDITY, AND SENSITIVITY TO DIAZEPAM

The Digit Vigilance Test (DVT), a measure of sustained attention and p sychomotor speed, was evaluated in terms of test-retest and alternate- form reliability as well as sensitivity to a single dose of diazepam ( 10 mg). A one-page version was compared to the standard two-page forma t Forty undergraduates, randomly assigned in a double-blind manner to either drug or placebo condition, were rested three times in two sessi ons (1 week apart). Both Page 1 and Total Time scores were found to be highly reliable across time and forms. Repeated measures ANOVAs revea led the Total Time score, bur not the Page 1 score, to be significant in discriminating diazepam from placebo across time, supporting the us e of the complete DVT for measuring drug effects. Findings based on co nvergent measures also help to validate the DVT as a measure of sustai ned attention.