Is prospective memory a dissociable cognitive function in HIV infection?

An emerging literature indicates that HIV infection is associated with deficits in prospective memory (ProM), or the ability to execute a future intention. This literature offers evidence of neurobiological dissociability of ProM from other cognitive abilities and its incremental ecological validity as a predictor of poorer everyday functioning outcomes (e.g., medication nonadherence). The present study evaluated the hypothesis that ProM represents a unique cognitive construct in HIV disease. A confirmatory 4-factor structural equation model was tested on data derived from 162 participants with HIV. The model posited that measures of ProM comprise a unique factor, apart from standard clinical tests of retrospective memory, executive functions, and motor skills. The fit of the model was evaluated using the Bollen-Stine bootstrap method and indicated that a 4-factor model with measures of ProM loading on a unique factor fit the data well, and better than a model with a single common factor hypothesized to drive cognitive performance. The results of this study lend further evidence to the dissociability of ProM in HIV infection, are consistent with prior studies in healthy adults, and contribute to a growing literature on the construct validity of ProM in HIV disease.