Projects per year
Abstract / Description of output
The Trail Making Test Part B (TMT-B) is commonly used as a brief and simple neuropsychological assessment of executive dysfunction. The TMT-B is thought to rely on a number of distinct cognitive processes that predict individual differences in performance. The current study examined the unique and shared contributions of latent component variables in a large cohort of older people. Five hundred and eighty-seven healthy, community-dwelling older adults who were all born in 1936 were assessed on the TMT-B and multiple tasks tapping cognitive domains of visuospatial ability, processing speed, memory and reading ability. Firstly, a first-order measurement model examining independent contributions of the four cognitive domains was fitted; a significant relationship between TMT-B completion times and processing speed was found (β = -0.610, p < .001). Secondly, a bifactor model examined the unique influence of each cognitive ability when controlling for a general cognitive factor. Importantly, both a general cognitive factor (g; β = -0.561, p < .001) and additional g-independent variance from processing speed (β = -0.464, p < .001) contributed to successful TMT-B performance. These findings suggest that older adults’ TMT-B performance is influenced by both general intelligence and processing speed, which may help understand poor performance on such tasks in clinical populations.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 23-32 |
Journal | Intelligence |
Volume | 75 |
Early online date | 13 Apr 2019 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jul 2019 |
Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)
- trail making test
- aging
- speed
- g
Fingerprint
Dive into the research topics of 'Individual differences in cognitive processes underlying Trail Making Test-B performance in old age: The Lothian Birth Cohort 1936'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 3 Finished
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Brain imaging and cognitive ageing in the Lothian Birth Cohort 1936: III
Wardlaw, J., Bastin, M. & Deary, I.
1/05/15 → 30/04/19
Project: Research
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RA2661 Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology Phase 2. Main Budget.
Deary, I., Gale, C., Holmes, M., Logie, P., Maclullich, A., Porteous, D., Seckl, J., Starr, J., Wardlaw, J. & Okely, J.
1/09/13 → 31/08/19
Project: Research