Construct validity of the comprehensive level of consciousness scale: A comparison of behavioral and neurodiagnostic measures

The goals of the resent study are (a) to asses the construct validity of the Comprehensive Level of Consciousness Scale (CLOCS), (b) to examine the contribution of behavioral measures to prediction of outcome following severe insult to the central nervous system, and (c) to determine the unique proportions of outcome variance explained by neurodiagnostic and behavioral measures. The results provide support for the construct validity of the CLOCS. In addition, the data indicate that behavioral measures do indeed possess significant prognostic value above and beyond that of neurodiagnostic measures alone. Finally, a decomposition of outcome variance demonstrates that behavioral measures explain a unique proportion of outcome variance which is roughly comparable to that explained by neurodiagnostic procedures. These results are discussed in terms of their clinical and research implications.