Comparison of the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status Effort Scale and Effort Index in a Dementia Sample

The aim of the current study was to compare two embedded measures of effort for the repeatable battery for the assessment of neuropsychological status (RBANS). Sensitivity and specificity of the Effort Index (EI) and Effort Scale (ES) were compared in a sample of individuals with genuine memory impairment (MI) and individuals coached to simulate MI. Overall, the EI yielded a sensitivity of 0.89 and specificity of 0.41, while the ES yielded a sensitivity of 0.88 and specificity of 0.81. When those in the MI group were separated by level of impairment, the EI was more specific when RBANS Total Scores were in the average or mildly impaired range, and the ES had greater specificity when RBANS Total Scores were in the severely impaired range. These results suggest that the embedded measure should be selected based on the level of impairment on the RBANS.