Influence of psychotropic drugs upon neuropsychological test performance

Commonly used psychotropic medications are widely presumed to have deleterious effects on neuropsychological test performance. However, given the special difficulties of neuropsychological assessment with psychiatric populations, these effects have rarely been directly examined for differential, quantitative effects on test scores. A comprehensive neuropsychological test battery is described that assesses executive functions, memory, language comprehension, motor and sensory functions, and manual praxis. Data are presented on 233 psychiatric patients (70 females, 163 males) referred for neuropsychological assessment. All people with known or suspected brain damage were excluded, with 100 not taking any type of psychoactive medication. Comparisons between an unmedicated group and those taking the most common medications showed differences on tests of perseverative responses and praxis. No effects for nonverbal memory, simple motor functions, basic intellectual processes or visuomotor functions were noted. Implications for the assessment of people taking psychotropic medications are discussed

Development of a Canadian adaptation of the Facts on Aging Quiz

Accurate knowledge about older adults is desirable for research into aging populations. The Palmore Facts on Aging Quiz (FAQ) has been one of the most widely used measures of knowledge about aging that has been used in English-speaking countries. The original true-false version has largely been replaced by the current multiple-choice format. Here I present data on a Canadian multiple-choice FAQ from 172 older adult residents in the community with a mean age of 70.3 years old (SD = 8.88). The mean percentage correct on the Canadian FAQ-2C was 54.4%, a proportion higher than the recent Australian data and some older American data on older adults. The Canadian adaptation of the modified Australian multiple-choice version demonstrates the value of the local verification of FAQ items’ scoring key if the knowledge assessed by the FAQ is to be used accurately in a different country or if the local scoring key was developed several years earlier

Influence of psychotropic drugs upon neuropsychological test performance

Commonly used psychotropic medications are widely presumed to have deleterious effects on neuropsychological test performance. However, given the special difficulties of neuropsychological assessment with psychiatric populations, these effects have rarely been directly examined for differential, quantitative effects on test scores. A comprehensive neuropsychological test battery is described that assesses executive functions, memory, language comprehension, motor and sensory functions, and manual praxis. Data are presented on 233 psychiatric patients (70 females, 163 males) referred for neuropsychological assessment. All people with known or suspected brain damage were excluded, with 100 not taking any type of psychoactive medication. Comparisons between an unmedicated group and those taking the most common medications showed differences on tests of perseverative responses and praxis. No effects for nonverbal memory, simple motor functions, basic intellectual processes or visuomotor functions were noted. Implications for the assessment of people taking psychotropic medications are discussed

Prediction of everyday task performance in older adults by perceived health, self-efficacy and cognitive ability

While research links neuropsychological performance to everyday functioning in cognitively impaired older adults, comparatively little research has investigated this relationship in unimpaired older people. This study investigated that relationship. A total of 134 independently living adults aged 60–93 years completed Cognistat, the Direct Assessment of Functional Status (DAFS), the Personality in Intellectual-Aging Contexts and a four-item subjective health measure. Hierarchical regression was used to examine the relative ability of these measures to predict the functional domains of the DAFS, hypothesizing that the health and self-efficacy measures would be more strongly associated with DAFS scores than with the cognitive domains. Self-reported health accounted for little variance in all measures, whereas self-efficacy contributed significantly to four functional domains. The cognitive variables contributed to only two domains, with memory the most consistent predictor. The study showed that a brief cognitive measure can partially predict the functional ability of older independently living adults

Exercise and executive functioning in older women

Research suggests that exercise can slow the rate of decline in cognitive functioning in older adults. The effects of aerobic and resistance exercise on executive functioning was examined in 68 women over 50 years of age. Participants completed the Tower of London and Benton Controlled Oral Word Association tests. Findings indicated that individuals participating in both aerobic and resistance exercises performed significantly better than individuals not participating in exercise. Individuals who were participating in both aerobic and resistance exercises did not perform disproportionately better. Thus the form of exercise appears to be less important than engaging in some form of exercise

The Role of Stereotypes in Age Discrimination in Hiring: Evaluation and Intervention

As the number of older adults grows, governments find it increasingly harder to support them through social and health care services. One solution to this problem is for older adults to remain in paid employment longer. However, older workers are discriminated against due to negative stereotyping by employers. Previous research has found that older females experienced greater discrimination than did older males. In order to address the issue of hiring discrimination against older adults a progressive two-stage research project was conducted. Using a questionnaire that was developed especially for this project, Study One explored the stereotypes held about older workers of both genders among Australian employers and undergraduates, using a national random sample of 128 companies across industries and 187 undergraduates across disciplines. Study One used a 2 x 2 factorial design with sample (employers and undergraduates) and questionnaire version (asking about older males or females)as the independent variables. There were three continuous dependent variables (DVs): 'sum of scale' - a sum of the ratings of the questionnaire's stereotype scale, 'likely to hire' - ratings of respondents' likelihood to hire older workers, and 'age relevance' - ratings of how important respondents' viewed age in making hiring decisions. The results showed systematic stereotyping among both samples with no significant differences across questionnaire version. Both samples indicated that they were less than likely to hire older workers and viewed age as relevant in hiring. Study Two was designed to test two interventions that were aimed to promote positive attitude changes toward older workers. It comprised two stages and used a randomized-controlled trial. In the first stage, respondents were sent one of three intervention materials. One involved inducing cognitive dissonance. Another involved a fact sheet that presented the misconceptions about older workers that were identified in Study One and contrasted them with empirical data. The third was a combination of the other two. In the second, testing stage, those who responded to the intervention plus a new control group were all sent questionnaires to assess the effects of the interventions. Intervention materials were posted to a national random sample of 900 companies across industries and to 147 undergraduate research volunteers. At the testing stage 556 employers and 137 undergraduates were addressed. Ninety· seven undergraduates and 267 employers responded. The first stage of Study Two used a 2 x 2 x 2 between subjects design with cognitive dissonance (yes or no), fact sheet (yes or no), and sample (employers and undergraduates) as the independent variables. There were four dependent variables: 'age preference'- respondents' general age preference in hiring, 'sum of scale', 'age relevant', and 'likely to hire'. The last three DVs were based on those used in Study One. The results of Study Two showed no significant differences between either the fact sheet or the cognitive dissonance conditions and controls. The cognitive dissonance and fact sheet combination showed significant positive effects among employers but not among undergraduates. Employers in the combination condition had significantly higher mean 'sum of scale' and 'age preference' scores, and indicated that they were more than likely to hire older workers whilst all other conditions were less than likely to do so. These significant effects in the employers' sample make a case for using the cognitive dissonance and fact sheet combination method in combating hiring discrimination against older workers. The results suggest that the drive to reduce cognitive dissonance could be harnessed to change stereotypes. Finally, the results emphasize the potential of psychological interventions to bring about social changes and to enhance compliance with legislation

An empirical attempt at evaluating stress: a failure discovered through cross-validation

Stress remains popular as a psychological construct. Different aspects of stress are emphasized depending upon the environmental issue, target population, and measure used. Existing measures are often confounded between causes of stress and effects of stress and also may emphasize a particular perspective on stress. Here we evaluate the empirical method of item selection as an alternative for developing a stress scale, using salivary cortisol levels as the empirical criterion. Items were adapted from measures of perceived stress, daily hassles, and life events as used in two studies of stress that measured salivary cortisol. Correlations with cortisol levels led to the retention of 75 items of the pool of 535, which were administered to a third sample of 28 medical students. The 75-item scale did not correlate with cortisol levels. Of 15 individual items that did, six correlated in the opposite direction to that predicted. Results illustrate the dangers of empirical item selection methods

Item format and social desirability: Implications for interpretation of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

The MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator) remains widely used in many counseling applications despite extensive criticism of its basic nature and psychometric properties. The present study was designed to examine specifically the accuracy of the claimed minimal influence of social desirability on Form G of the MBTI. Undergraduate students (n = 26) judged the desirability of each item option of Form G, which was compared across the 60 item pairs in which both options were scored. The rated values were approximately equal for two domains, while J and E item options were judged to be more desirable than their P and I paired response options. A second study (n = 52) evaluated the social desirability of the 16 MBTI type descriptors, finding most descriptions to be above the neutral range in desirability. These results suggest that stylistic responding contaminates MBTI profiles and interpretative material. Consequently, users should consider alternative measures and at the very least, take great care in interpreting the MBTI because of its flawed structure

Variations in cognitive functioning in genetic generalized epilepsy: four case studies

Introduction. The traditional view of cognition in idiopathic or genetic generalized epilepsy (GGE) is that "one size fits all" i.e. only very mild generalized impairment might be detected, if any. This paper describes four case studies of cognitive functioning in GGE patients with photosensitivity and reflexive seizures. Aim. The aim was to discover whether each individual's set of cognitive deficits varied in accordance with his/her other clinical phenomena such as photosensitivity and kinds of reflexive seizures. Method. Neurological and cognitive performance was assessed by comprehensive evaluation of each patient based on interviews, neurologist's EEG reports and neuropsychological tests. Assessment of cognitive domains included estimated pre-morbid I.Q. based on reading ability and demographic norms, current I.Q., attention factors, verbal memory, visual memory and executive functions. Results. Clinical signs and investigative studies indicated that two cases typically began reflexive seizure episodes with facial myoclonia which evolved into tonic-clonic convulsions or generalized myoclonic seizures. These patients had widespread attention and working memory deficits, some severe, together with lowered intelligence scores. In contrast, two other cases (with no history of myoclonus) had generalized reflexive seizures originating in the occipital lobes, very mild localized visual dysfunction and high intelligence. Conclusions. The systematic variation in extent and nature of cognitive dysfunction illustrated in these cases with reflexive seizures (preceded by myoclonia or visual phenomena) would be explained by a more recent conceptualization of GGE as encompassing regional differences in variable hyperexcitability located at cortical levels or functional neural networks