Laterality differences in quantitative and qualitative hooper performance

Abstract

The Hooper Visual Organization Test (HVOT) is a measure of visuospatial processing commonly employed in neuropsychological assessment. Despite the well-documented relationship between visuospatial abilities and right hemisphere function, the literature has not supported a right hemisphere association with HVOT performance. The current study was conducted to examine laterality differences in HVOT performance. Sixty-seven geriatric stroke patients (44 right CVAs, 23 left CVAs) were administered the HVOT and the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMS). Results revealed significant differences between CVA groups for total score, with right CVA patients performing more poorly. Qualitative error analyses revealed highest frequencies for part responses and don't know/no response errors. Between-group differences were seen for part and unformed/unassociated errors (higher right CVA rates), and language-based errors (higher left CVA rates). Findings are consistent with theories of brain lateralization and suggest that whereas HVOT performance predominantly involves right hemisphere functions, left hemisphere dysfunction may also lead to impaired performance, and the two can be discriminated by qualitative analysis of errors.

GRAND ROUNDS: Pre- and Post-Right Middle Cerebral Artery Stroke in a Young Adult: A Case Study Examining the Sensitivity of the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS)

“…These post-stroke cognitive differences are consistent with the literature on right-hemisphere strokes (Gerritsen et al, 2003;Gillespie et al, 2006;Jordan & Hillis, 2005;Larson et al, 2005;Nadler et al, 1996;Stapleton et al, 2001). It should be reiterated, however, that this patient was left-handed, and the possibility of an atypical organization of cerebral function dominance exists (Floel, Buyx, Breitenstein, Lohmann, & Knecht, 2005).…”

“…Right-hemisphere strokes have been linked to a variety of psychiatric, neurobehavioral, and cognitive deficits, including depression (Robinson, 2003), mania (Cummings & Mendez, 1984), neglect (Jordan & Hillis, 2005), emotional recognition and expression difficulties (Charbonneau, Scherzer, Aspirot, & Cohen, 2003;Kucharska-Pietura, Phillips, Gernand, & David, 2003), and deficits in visuospatial processing (Nadler, Grace, White, Butters, & Malloy, 1996), visual and verbal memory (Gillespie, Bowen, & Foster, 2006), processing speed (Gerritsen, Berg, Deelman, Visser-Keizer, & Meyboom-de Jong, 2003), and attention (Stapleton, Ashburn, & Stack, 2001). Right-hemisphere strokes are also more poorly recognized than left-hemisphere lesions (Foerch et al, 2005), which could place these patients at risk for fewer treatment options (e.g., falling outside time windows for tissue plasma activator) and poorer outcomes (e.g., increased morbidity and mortality).…”

What Do Hooper-Like Tests Measure?

“…In contrast, the failure to find a significant disadvantage of patients with right hemisphere lesions as compared to those with left hemisphere lesions is apparently an effect of sample size. In fact, right hemisphere disadvantage in the VOT has been shown by some studies (Merten, 2004;Nadler et al, 1996), and for all those which missed such an effect (Boyd, 1981;Fitz, Conrad, Hom, Sarff, & Majovski, 1992;Lewis, Campbell, Takushi-Chinen, Brown, Dennis, Wood, & Weir, 1997;Wang, 1977;Wetzel & Murphy, 1991;York & Cermak, 1995) there was a tendency towards lower VOT scores in patients with right-hemisphere lesions which missed statistical significance because of low sample sizes. However, there is little doubt now that the test cannot be considered as a measure of mere right hemisphere performance but that functions of both hemispheres are involved in task solution.…”

“…This kind of answer was first labeled concrete (Hooper, as cited in Walker, 1956). Later, it was named isolate response (Walker, 1957) or part error and has been shown to be given more often by patients with substantial right-hemisphere dysfunction (Nadler, Grace, White, Butters, & Malloy, 1996). However, a major problem with this kind of qualitative scoring is that in most instances we may be able to easily identify isolate responses when a patient gives a wrong answer, but not so in cases where the identification of only one part of the object leads to the correct answer (as in the examples cited above: candle, saw, and scissors).…”

A Qualitative Analysis of Inaccurate Responses on the Hooper Visual Organization Test

“…However, Wetzel and Murphy (1991) reported that many brain-damaged individuals perform well. Some authors (e.g., Hooper, 1958;Nadler, et al, 1996) have suggested that a qualitative analysis of the Hooper Visual Organization Test could add to its clinical usefulness by increasing our knowledge of a patient's neuropsychological deficits.…”