Test performance and classification statistics for the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test in selected clinical samples

Abstract

The Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test [RAVLT; Rey, A. (1941). L'examen psychologique dans les cas d'encéphalopathie traumatique. Archives de Psychologie, 28, 21] is a commonly used neuropsychological measure that assesses verbal learning and memory. Normative data have been compiled [Schmidt, M. (1996). Rey Auditory and Verbal Learning Test: A handbook. Los Angeles, CA: Western Psychological Services]. When assessing an individual suspected of neurological dysfunction, useful comparisons include the extent that the patient deviates from healthy peers and also how closely the subject's performance matches those with known brain injury. This study provides the means and S.D.'s of 392 individuals with documented neurological dysfunction [closed head TBI (n=68), neoplasms (n=57), stroke (n=47), Dementia of the Alzheimer's type (n=158), and presurgical epilepsy left seizure focus (n=28), presurgical epilepsy right seizure focus (n=34)] and 122 patients with no known neurological dysfunction and psychiatric complaints. Patients were stratified into three age groups, 16-35, 36-59, and 60-88. Data were provided for trials I-V, List B, immediate recall, 30-min delayed recall, and recognition. Classification characteristics of the RAVLT using [Schmidt, M. (1996). Rey Auditory and Verbal Learning Test: A handbook. Los Angeles, CA: Western Psychological Services] meta-norms found the RAVLT to best distinguish patients suspected of Alzheimer's disease from the psychiatric comparison group.

Applicability of the Rey Auditory-Verbal Learning Test to an adult sample in Brazil

“…3 Our results are consistent with the notion that, in general, women perform better in recall trials, but not in the recognition trial. Nevertheless, it appears that, in the RAVLT, influence of gender is weaker compared to that of age.…”

“…2,3 In countries where English is the main spoken language, there are several studies providing parameters for result interpretation [4][5][6][7] when the test is applied to different age groups. In Brazil, normative standards have been developed for the 16 to 89 yearold age bracket.…”

Neuropsychological Clustering in Bipolar and Major Depressive Disorder

“…Neuropsychological performance was compared between clusters by one-way analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), to control for the effects of any demographic or clinical variables which differed across clusters. Lastly, Z-scores were classified according to the presence versus absence of cognitive impairment (with Z = −1.5 as a cutoff point) (Schoenberg et al, 2006). The prevalence of impairment on each measure per cluster was compared using Fisher's exact test.…”

Brazilian children performance on Rey’s auditory verbal learning paradigm

“…In its different versions, the auditory verbal learning paradigm, is one of the most widely used learning and memory assessment procedures. With its help, memory deficits have been detected in a great variety of disorders [7][8][9][10][11][12][13] , including during infanthood [12][13][14][15][16] . Also, it has been showing extremely robust in terms of its psychometric qualities 6 and of the internal consistency of the results pattern, despite of variations in the procedure 17,18 .…”