No abstract

The former Kendrick Battery--the Synonym Learning Test (SLT) and the Digit Copying Test (DCT)--has been revised. The new version comprises the Object Learning Test (OLT) and the DCT. The discrepancy between Mill Hill and WAIS Verbasl IQs as a diagnostic sign has been eliminated. The Revised Battery has been shown to discriminate between elderly dementing and non-dementing subjects, and also between normal, depressed, and dementing elderly subjects. Utilizing test-retest data it has been found possible to discriminate absolutely between dementing and non-dementing subjects. The reliabilities and validities of the Battery have been ascertained by examining a broad spectrum of elderly subjects: normal, depressed, dementing and institutionalized.

A theory is presented for the assessment of cognitive functions in senescence. The theory has been derived from three sources : the known effects of normal ageing on cognitive functions ; Routtenberg's two-arousal hypothesis of cortical excitation; and Post's somatic explanation of psychiatric abnormality. From the theory testable predictions have been derived concerning the pattern of scores that should be obtained from the Synonym Learning Test and the Digit Copying Test in relation to three diagnostic classifications: demented, pseudo-demented and non-demented. It is shown that the Synonym Learning Test and the Digit Copying Test, when used in a test-retest sequence in conjunction with Mill Hill and WAIS Verbal Scale IQ discrepancies, successfully identify the three diagnostic classifications with 79, 87 and 99 per cent confidence respectively, giving an overall congruence with diagnostic classification of 90 per cent.

The object of this study was to examine the possibility of using clinically-orientated interviews to gain a similar attachment classification to the Adult Attachment Interview. Little agreement on classifications was shown between the two interviews, showing insufficient evidence to suggest that it is possible to assess adult attachment status using clinically-orientated interviews.

Four major areas of research: the early detection of Alzheimer's disease; the psychological side-effects of anticholinergic drugs; the significance of late onset depression; and the relationship between physical activity, ageing and cognitive status, are discussed with reference to the problem of improving the quality of life in the aged. The four areas of research are unified by discussing two aspects of information processing: speed of performance and memory. The significance of and need for the assessment of cognitive status in the elderly are also discussed, as well as the notion that tests for the elderly should fit into their ecology.