Abstract
This study assessed the reliability of a simple visual reaction time test in adult male volunteers. Reliability was defined as stability of variance, covariance, and mean performance across sessions. Coefficients of variation and reliability were also calculated. Total response times were divided into two components, reaction time and movement time. 14 volunteers were tested on six occasions over a 12-mo. period. On the first occasion, five sessions were given; subsequently, one practice and one test session were conducted. The results showed that variance and covariance were not significantly different across sessions. Multivariate trend analysis indicated no significant trend in the means and no significant deviation from linearity over time, i.e., performance was stable. Within- and between-subject variability were lower for reaction time (3.7% and 23.3%) than for movement time (7.5% and 45.6%). Test-retest reliability reached 0.98 and 0.97 while average split-half reliabilities were 0.84 and 0.85 for reaction and movement times, respectively.
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