A normative study of neuropsychological test performance of a normal elderly sample
Date
1982
Authors
Montgomery, Kathleen May
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Abstract
A sample of 85 normal elderly people were administered a battery of neuropsychological tests chosen to represent those functions which may first signal the onset of a dementing process. Tests included were the Vocabulary subtest of the WAIS, Mattis Dementia Rating Scale (MDRS), Boston Naming Test (BNT), Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVL), Benton Visual Retention Test - Multiple Choice form (BVRT), Controlled Word Association Test (CWA), and Hooper Visual Organization Iest (HVOT). Frequency distributions of scores on each test are provided. The sample mean score on each test was compared to either published norms for elderly samples or for younger samples. The range of scores on the MDRS was great-er than suggested by its author, though still above that of brain - damaged patients. The test measures showing the greatest change from the performance levels of younger subjects were the BNT , RAVL , and HVOT. Other measures showed little change. Two methods of assessing overall performance are presented. Anemia and deficits in memory and visuoperceptual analysis may be a normal part of the aging process.