Correlation between Subjective and Objective Cognitive-Linguistic Tests in Older Adults

Cognitive-linguistic changes that normally accompany aging are often simply an annoyance, but in some instances they may herald a more perilous course of decline to a state of neurological disease. This study investigated the correlation between subjective and objective tests on cognitive-linguistic abilities in older adults and the predictors of objective performances. Healthy elders over 65 years of age (n=63) and their informants (n=63) completed the subjective and objective cognitive-linguistic tests (ISCOLE and CAPTBI) from July of 2015 to February of 2016. The main findings were as follows: performance on the self-report test was not significantly different from that on the informant-report test. Additionally, eight domains in older adults group and 15 domains in the informants group were significantly associated with performance on the objective test. Finally, language on the informant-report test was a predictor of several abilities including problem solving and memory on the informant-report test predicted executive function and language. The present study demonstrates that two groups have significant differences in correlation between subjective and objective tests on the cognitive-linguistic abilities, and there are more relevant domains in rating by informants. These findings have implications for the use of cognitive-linguistic evaluation and preventive intervention in clinical settings.