Stroop colour word test as a measure of attentional deficit following mild head injury

This study investigated (a) the sensitivity of a modified Stroop Colour Word Test to index attentional deficits in mild head-injured patients and (b) the influence of anxiety on attentional performance. Patients (N = 35) were individually matched with controls for age, sex, education, and IQ. Mild head-injured patients performed more poorly than did controls on the original, modified, and interference conditions of the Stroop Test. Although state anxiety influenced performance on the Stroop Test, deficits in performance were not explained simply by anxiety. The findings support the hypothesis that mild head injury does result in an identifiable impairment of focused attention.