Neuropsychological Test Performance Among Native and Non-Native Swedes: Second Language Effects

Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology ◽

10.1093/arclin/acaa043 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jacob Stålhammar ◽

Per Hellström ◽

Carl Eckerström ◽

Anders Wallin

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Test Performance ◽

Native Speakers ◽

Neuropsychological Test ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Boston Naming Test ◽

Score Interpretation ◽

Complex Figure ◽

Language Effects ◽

Verbal Component

Abstract Objective We aimed to study second language effects on neuropsychological (NP) test performance. Method We administered an NP test battery in Swedish to 322 healthy community dwelling participants, recruited through the Gothenburg Pilot phase of the Swedish CArdioPulmonary BioImage Study (SCAPIS Pilot). All participants were conversationally fluent Swedish speakers (237 native, 85 non-native, mean age 61.1 years). We compared the NP scores of native and non-native participants. We also investigated the influence of (a) age of arrival to Sweden, (b) majority language family of the birth country, and (c) proficiency in Swedish as assessed with a 30 item Boston naming test (BNT). Results Native speakers obtained better results on all NP tasks with a verbal component, whereas no significant differences were seen on completely nonverbal tasks (Rey complex figure). For non-native speakers, lower age at arrival to Sweden, arrival from a country where Swedish was also spoken, or arrival from a country with a majority language closer to Swedish, were all linked to better NP scores. Dichotomizing by BNT showed that normally-to-highly proficient non-native speakers obtained better scores. Conclusions Second language effects may contribute to misclassification of non-native speakers. Assumptions of fluency based on short conversations may be misleading. A proficiency assessment with BNT may improve NP score interpretation among non-native speakers.

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Neuropsychological Test Performance in Framingham: A Descriptive Study

Psychological Reports ◽

10.1177/0033294187060003-201.1 ◽

1987 ◽

Vol 60 (3_part_2) ◽

pp. 1023-1040

Author(s):

Mary E. Farmer ◽

Lon R. White ◽

Steven J. Kittner ◽

Edith Kaplan ◽

Elizabeth Moes ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Test Performance ◽

Neuropsychological Tests ◽

Language Skills ◽

Community Sample ◽

Neuropsychological Test ◽

Descriptive Study ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Abstract Thinking ◽

Framingham Study ◽

Hearing Impairments

In 1976–1978, a battery of eight neuropsychologic tests was administered to 2,123 participants in the Framingham Study aged 55 to 89 yr. The battery was designed to sample multiple areas of cognitive function including language skills, memory, learning, reproduction of designs, attention, and abstract thinking. Performance is described for several groups in this population: a large community-dwelling sample, those with hearing impairments, and those with documented strokes. Performance is described by age, sex, and education strata for the community sample. This normative information should be useful for interpreting individual test performance on neuropsychological tests.

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First language effects on the identification and evaluation of second language speech

Nederlandse taalkunde ◽

10.5117/nedtaa2021.2.002.ping ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 26 (2) ◽

pp. 171-194

Author(s):

Anne-France Pinget

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Environmental Factors ◽

Language Proficiency ◽

Native Speakers ◽

First Language ◽

Language Aptitude ◽

Content Type ◽

It Impacts ◽

Language Effects

Abstract In Belgium, Dutch as spoken by Francophone learners is relatively frequent in political, commercial or educational contexts. While the characteristics of this second language (L2) variety have been studied extensively, there is to date no systematic report of how it is evaluated by either native speakers of Dutch or non-natives. Previous studies conducted in other language contexts have found that non-natives tend to be very critical towards L2 accents similar to their own. The main goal of the present study is to investigate the extent to which the listener’s first language (L1) impacts ratings of the fluency, accentedness and comprehensibility of L2 Dutch as spoken by Francophone learners and how it impacts the identification of the speakers’ L1. Specifically, we compared ratings by three groups of listeners: Francophone learners of Dutch, native speakers of Belgian Dutch and native speakers of Netherlandic Dutch. Moreover, the extent to which three additional cognitive and environmental factors influence L2 ratings is examined: listeners’ familiarity with the L2 variety, their language aptitude and language proficiency. The results show that the majority of native and non-native listeners recognized the speakers’ L1 (French). Non-native listeners perceived L2 speech as less fluent, less comprehensible and more accented than natives did, which corroborates the previously reported critical attitudes towards a shared L2 accent. Moreover, subtle differences in accent and fluency ratings were found between the Netherlandic Dutch and the Belgian Dutch listeners. No clear effects of other cognitive and environmental factors appeared in the ratings.

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Age, education and gender effects on neuropsychological functions in healthy Indian older adults

Dementia & Neuropsychologia ◽

10.1590/s1980-57642014dn82000010 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 148-154 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Ravikesh Tripathi ◽

Keshav Kumar ◽

Srikala Bharath ◽

P. Marimuthu ◽

Mathew Varghese

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Working Memory ◽

Executive Functions ◽

Test Performance ◽

Neuropsychological Test ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Gender Effects ◽

Low Education ◽

And Gender ◽

Low Educated

ABSTRACT It is essential to use culturally appropriate, sensitive and specific tests that reflect true cognitive performance. However, several factors including age, education and gender can influence neuropsychological test performance. Objective: To examine the effects of age, education and gender on neuropsychological function in older adults using measures of global cognitive screening, attention, working memory, executive functions, memory, construction, language and parietal focal signs. Methods: This is a cross sectional normative study of 180 community-dwelling normal older adults. All participants were screened with the Hindi Mental Status Examination (HMSE), Everyday Activities Scale for India (EASI), Edinburgh handedness inventory (EDI) and MINI Screen, and followed by a detailed neuropsychological assessment. Results: Stepwise regression analysis revealed that education was associated with better performance on all the neuropsychological tests. Females performed significantly better on measures of memory. Further, most of the illiterate subjects, including low educated participants, refused to cooperate on measures of executive functioning. Conclusion: Education was found to be the strongest determinant of neuropsychological test performance followed by age and gender. Our study demonstrates that Indian healthy normal older adults with low education perform poorly on measures of planning and working memory. Traditional measures of planning and working memory should be avoided or used cautiously in the presence of low education. There is an urgent need to develop tasks for measuring executive functions, especially in low educated Indian older adults.

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Detection of dementia of the Alzheimer type in a population-based sample: Neuropsychological test performance

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617700000242 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 1 (3) ◽

pp. 252-260 ◽

Cited By ~ 28

Author(s):

Deborah A. Cahn ◽

David P. Salmon ◽

Nelson Butters ◽

Wigbert C. Wiederholt ◽

Jody Corey-Bloom ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Alzheimer’S Disease ◽

Alzheimer's Disease ◽

At Risk ◽

Test Performance ◽

Logistic Model ◽

Neuropsychological Test ◽

Population Based ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Elderly Subjects ◽

Alzheimer Type

AbstractThe ability to detect dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT) in a community-dwelling sample of elderly individuals on the basis of neuropsychological test performance was examined. Three hundred sixty community-dwelling individuals were identified by neurological examination as having probable or possible Alzheimer’s disease, being at risk for Alzheimer’s disease, or having no cognitive impairment. A logistic model comprised of tests of verbal and nonverbal memory, mental flexibility, and confrontation naming correctly classified 82% of DAT subjects and 98% of normal elderly subjects. The logistic model classified 77% of subjects who were diagnosed as at risk for Alzheimer's disease as being cognitively normal. A cross-validation with a clinically based sample of subjects correctly classified 89% of DAT patients and 100% of normal control subjects. The results suggest that psychometric discrimination of dementia may be less accurate in community-dwelling populations than in clinically based samples. (JINS, 1995, I, 252–260.)

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The Sydney Memory and Ageing Study (MAS): methodology and baseline medical and neuropsychiatric characteristics of an elderly epidemiological non-demented cohort of Australians aged 70–90 years

International Psychogeriatrics ◽

10.1017/s1041610210001067 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 22 (8) ◽

pp. 1248-1264 ◽

Cited By ~ 182

Author(s):

Perminder S. Sachdev ◽

Henry Brodaty ◽

Simone Reppermund ◽

Nicole A. Kochan ◽

Julian N. Trollor ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Impairment ◽

Test Performance ◽

Clinical Chemistry ◽

Neuropsychological Test ◽

The Elderly ◽

Structural Mri ◽

Community Dwelling ◽

Rate Of Change ◽

Amnestic Mci ◽

Ageing Study

ABSTRACTBackground:The Sydney Memory and Ageing Study (Sydney MAS) was initiated in 2005 to examine the clinical characteristics and prevalence of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and related syndromes, and to determine the rate of change in cognitive function over time.Methods:Non-demented community-dwelling individuals (N = 1037) aged 70–90 were recruited from two areas of Sydney, following a random approach to 8914 individuals on the electoral roll. They underwent detailed neuropsychiatric and medical assessments and donated a blood sample for clinical chemistry, proteomics and genomics. A knowledgeable informant was also interviewed. Structural MRI scans were performed on 554 individuals, and subgroups participated in studies of falls and balance, metabolic and inflammatory markers, functional MRI and prospective memory. The cohort is to be followed up with brief telephone reviews annually, and detailed assessments biannually.Results:This is a generally well-functioning cohort mostly living in private homes and rating their health as being better than average, although vascular risk factors are common. Most (95.5%) participants or their informants identified a cognitive difficulty, and 43.5% had impairment on at least one neuropsychological test. MCI criteria were met by 34.8%; with19.3% qualifying for amnestic MCI, whereas 15.5% had non-amnestic MCI; 1.6% had impairment on neuropsychological test performance but no subjective complaints; and 5.8% could not be classified. The rate of MCI was 30.9% in the youngest (70–75) and 39.1% in the oldest (85–90) age bands. Rates of depression and anxiety were 7.1% and 6.9% respectively.Conclusions:Cognitive complaints are common in the elderly, and nearly one in three meet criteria for MCI. Longitudinal follow-up of this cohort will delineate the progression of complaints and objective cognitive impairment, and the determinants of such change.

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Stroop effect in Spanish–English bilinguals

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617702860106 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 8 (6) ◽

pp. 819-827 ◽

Cited By ~ 57

Author(s):

MÓNICA ROSSELLI ◽

ALFREDO ARDILA ◽

MIRTHA N. SANTISI ◽

MARÍA DEL ROSARIO ARECCO ◽

JUDY SALVATIERRA ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Second Language ◽

Language Proficiency ◽

Test Performance ◽

Repeated Measures ◽

Age Of Acquisition ◽

Stroop Test ◽

South Florida ◽

Self Report ◽

Color Reading ◽

Boston Naming Test

The aim of this study was to analyze the performance of Spanish–English bilinguals on the Golden Stroop Test. The effects of bilingualism, participants' age, age of acquisition of the second language, and proficiency in each language were analyzed. Participants consisted of 71 Spanish–English bilinguals, 40 English monolinguals, and 11 Spanish monolinguals from South Florida. Proficiency in Spanish and English was established using a self-report questionnaire and the English and Spanish versions of the Boston Naming Test. In bilinguals, the Golden Stroop Test was administered in English and in Spanish. Overall, performance was slower in bilinguals than in monolinguals. No significant differences were observed in color reading but bilinguals performed worse in the naming color condition. Even though bilinguals were 5% to 10% slower in the color–word condition, one-way ANOVAs revealed no statistically significant differences between groups. Within the bilingual group, the Stroop Test scores were similar in both English and Spanish. Age of acquisition of the second language did not predict the Stroop Test performance. Repeated measures ANOVA demonstrated a significant interaction between Language Proficiency × Language (in which the test was administered) in some of the ST conditions. In balanced bilinguals, the language used in the ST did not matter, but in unbalanced subjects, the best-spoken language showed better results. In addition, our results support the presence of both between- and within-language interference in Spanish–English bilinguals. Different conceptualization models of the structure of bilingual memory are disclosed. (JINS, 2002, 8, 819–827.)

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Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Exacerbates Emotional Complaints but not Cognitive Impairments in Individuals Suffering from Postconcussional Disorder after Mild Traumatic Brain Injury

Zeitschrift für Neuropsychologie ◽

10.1024/1016-264x/a000132 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 26 (1) ◽

pp. 35-50 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Sara C. Schroeder ◽

Ronald M. Ruff ◽

Lutz Jäncke

Keyword(s):

Traumatic Brain Injury ◽

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder ◽

Brain Injury ◽

Posttraumatic Stress ◽

Mild Traumatic Brain Injury ◽

Test Performance ◽

Stress Disorder ◽

Negative Impact ◽

Neuropsychological Test ◽

Composite Scale

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) on (a) neuropsychological test performance and (b) self-reported emotional complaints within individuals suffering from postconcussional disorder (PCD) after a mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI). A two-group comparative research design was employed. Two MTBI samples with and without PTSD were assessed with a neuropsychological test battery and the Ruff Neurobehavioral Inventory (RNBI). On the neurocognitive test performances no significant between group differences were found, but the MTBI group with PTSD endorsed a significantly greater number of emotional complaints, especially in the RNBI subscales of anxiety and depression. The patients with PTSD also endorsed a significantly greater number of premorbid sequelae in the RNBI emotional composite scale as well as the RNBI premorbid subscales of pain, anxiety and abuse. In sum, PTSD has a negative impact on emotional but not cognitive functioning within individuals suffering from PCD after a mild TBI.

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