Cognitive estimation in early dementia

Date of Completion

January 2001

Keywords

Psychology, Clinical|Psychology, Cognitive

Degree

Ph.D.

Abstract

Dementia is associated with a reduced capacity to perform tasks of executive functioning. The current study examined executive functioning in demented versus intact elderly participants through the use of the Biber Cognitive Estimation Test (BCET). The BCET is a 20-item test with five questions in each of four domains: quantity, distance, weight and time. The sample included 28 patients diagnosed with dementia of the Alzheimer's type (DAT), 24 patients diagnosed dementia syndrome of Parkinson's disease (PD), and 24 volunteer controls. Results demonstrated that the BCET had good reliability with a dementia population. Results also demonstrated that the BCET was able to distinguish between demented versus intact participants. Furthermore, the DAT and PD groups were shown to have different patterns of responding in their BCET domain scores. The findings from this study suggested differential involvement of cortical and subcortical structures and offered support for the cortical versus subcortical distinction of dementia. ^

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