Brazilian adaptation of the Hotel Task: a tool for the ecological assessment of executive functions

Over recent years, neuropsychological research has been increasingly concerned with the need to develop more ecologically valid instruments for the assessment of executive functions. The Hotel Task is one of the most widely used ecological measures of executive functioning, and provides an assessment of planning, organization, self-monitoring and cognitive flexibility. OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study was to adapt the Hotel Task for use in the Brazilian population. METHODS: The sample comprised 27 participants (three translators, six expert judges, seven healthy adults, ten patients with traumatic brain injuries and one hotel manager). The adaptation process consisted of five steps, which were repeated until a satisfactory version of the task was produced. The steps were as follows: (1) Translation; (2) Development of new stimuli and brainstorming among the authors; (3) Analysis by expert judges; (4) Pilot studies; (5) Assessment by an expert in business administration and hotel management. RESULTS: The adapted version proved adequate and valid for the assessment of executive functions. However, further research must be conducted to obtain evidence of the reliability, as well as the construct and criterion validity, sensitivity and specificity, of the Hotel Task. CONCLUSION: Many neurological and/or psychiatric populations may benefit from the adapted task, since it may make significant contributions to the assessment of dysexecutive syndromes and their impact on patient functioning.

近年来，神经心理学研究愈发关注开发生态效度更高的执行功能评估工具的需求。酒店任务（Hotel Task）是目前应用最广泛的执行功能生态化评估工具之一，可用于评估计划、组织、自我监控与认知灵活性。研究目的：本研究旨在针对巴西人群对酒店任务进行本土化适配。方法：本研究样本共包含27名参与者，分别为3名翻译人员、6名专家评审、7名健康成年人、10名创伤性脑损伤患者以及1名酒店管理人员。适配流程共分为五个步骤，并循环迭代直至获得令人满意的任务版本，具体步骤如下：（1）翻译；（2）开发全新刺激材料并开展作者头脑风暴；（3）专家评审分析；（4）预试验；（5）由企业管理与酒店管理领域专家进行评估。结果：适配后的版本经证实可有效且适用于执行功能评估。不过，仍需开展进一步研究以获取该酒店任务的信度、结构效度与效标效度、敏感性及特异性相关证据。结论：诸多神经科及/或精神科人群均可从该适配版任务中获益，因其可为执行功能障碍综合征的评估及其对患者功能的影响提供重要参考依据。