Premium
Broad spectrum assessment of psychopathology and adaptive functioning with the Older Adult Behavior Checklist: a validation and diagnostic discrimination study
Author(s) -
Brigidi Bartholomew D.,
Achenbach Thomas M.,
Dumenci Levent,
Newhouse Paul A.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
international journal of geriatric psychiatry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.28
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1099-1166
pISSN - 0885-6230
DOI - 10.1002/gps.2459
Subject(s) - psychology , dementia , clinical dementia rating , clinical psychology , psychopathology , checklist , rating scale , geriatric depression scale , psychiatry , global assessment of functioning , medical diagnosis , mood , geriatric psychiatry , brief psychiatric rating scale , cognition , disease , medicine , developmental psychology , cognitive impairment , psychosis , depressive symptoms , pathology , cognitive psychology
Objective Self‐administered by spouses and other collateral informants, the nationally normed Older Adult Behavior Checklist (OABCL) provides standardized data on diverse aspects of older adult psychopathology and adaptive functioning. We tested the validity of the Older Adult Behavior Checklist (OABCL) scale scores in terms of associations with diagnoses of dementia of the Alzheimer's type (DAT) and mood disorders (MD) and with nine measures of psychopathology, cognitive performance, and adaptive functioning. Method Informants completed OABCLs for 727 60–97‐year‐olds recruited from a memory disorders clinic, geriatric psychiatry clinic, and community‐dwelling seniors. OABCL scale scores were tested for associations with DAT and MD diagnoses, as well as with scores on the Neuropsychiatric Inventory, Mini‐Mental State Exam (MMSE), Clock Drawing Test, Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale, Geriatric Depression Scale, Clinical Dementia Rating, Dementia Severity Rating Scale, Trail Making Test Part A, and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living. Results OABCL scales had medium to large correlations with the nine other indices of functioning and significantly augmented MMSE discrimination between patients with DAT versus MD. OABCL scales also discriminated significantly between patients diagnosed with DAT versus MD and both these groups versus nonclinical subjects. Conclusions Multiple OABCL scales had medium to large associations with diverse indices of functioning based on other kinds of data. The nationally normed OABCL provides new ways to integrate informant and self‐report data to improve assessment of older adults. Specifically, the OABCL can provide discrimination between those who qualify for diagnoses of DAT versus MD versus neither diagnosis. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.