Emotional Verbal Learning Test: Development and Psychometric Properties

Memory deficits are a common feature of neurological and psychiatric disorders. Measures designed to evaluate memory in clinical populations have distinguished between memory for verbal and visual information; however, few tests assess the recall and recognition of emotional information, despite evidence suggesting that brain regions are differentially involved in memory for emotional and neutral stimuli and that affective disturbances are common in psychiatric and neurological disorders. The present study reports the test development and psychometric properties of the Emotional Verbal Learning Test (EVLT), a new neuropsychological measure that allows for the examination of emotional learning and memory. Psychometric analyses indicated that the EVLT has good internal consistency and test-retest reliability, as well as discriminant validity, clinical utility, and sensitivity to mood-congruency effects. This new measure has potential to be a valuable research and a clinical tool in the assessment of emotional memory and learning in healthy individuals and persons with neuropsychiatric disorders.