Development and Validation of a Vocabulary Measure in the Mobile Toolbox

OBJECTIVE

We describe the development of a new computer adaptive vocabulary test, Mobile Toolbox (MTB) Word Meaning, and validity evidence from 3 studies.

METHOD

Word Meaning was designed to be a multiple-choice synonym test optimized for self-administration on a personal smartphone. The items were first calibrated online in a sample of 7,525 participants to create the computer-adaptive test algorithm for the Word Meaning measure within the MTB app. In Study 1, 92 participants self-administered Word Meaning on study-provided smartphones in the lab and were administered external measures by trained examiners. In Study 2, 1,021 participants completed the external measures in the lab and Word Meaning was self-administered remotely on their personal smartphones. In Study 3, 141 participants self-administered Word Meaning remotely twice with a 2-week delay on personal iPhones.

RESULTS

The final bank included 1363 items. Internal consistency was adequate to good across samples (ρxx = 0.78 to 0.81, p < .001). Test-retest reliability was good (ICC = 0.65, p < .001), and the mean theta score was not significantly different upon the second administration. Correlations were moderate to large with measures of similar constructs (ρ = 0.67-0.75, p < .001) and non-significant with measures of dissimilar constructs. Scores demonstrated small to moderate correlations with age (ρ = 0.35 to 0.45, p < .001) and education (ρ = 0.26, p < .001).

CONCLUSION

The MTB Word Meaning measure demonstrated evidence of reliability and validity in three samples. Further validation studies in clinical samples are necessary.

Examining Demographic Factors, Psychosocial Wellbeing and Cardiovascular Health in Subjective Cognitive Decline in the Brain Health Registry Cohort

BACKGROUND

Subjective cognitive decline (SCD) is defined as an individual's perception of sustained cognitive decline compared to their normal state while still performing within boundaries for normal functioning. Demographic, psychosocial and medical factors have been linked to age-related cognitive decline, and Alzheimer's dementia (AD). However, their relation to risk for SCD remains unclear. This study aims to identify demographic factors, psychosocial and cardiovascular health associated with SCD within the Brain Health Registry (BHR) online cohort.

METHODS

Participants aged 55+ (N=27,596) in the BHR self-reported SCD measured using the Everyday Cognition Scale (ECog) and medical conditions, depressive symptoms, body mass index, quality of sleep, health, family history of AD, years of education, race, ethnicity and gender. Multivariable linear regression was used to examine whether SCD was associated with demographic, psychosocial, and medical conditions.

RESULTS

We found that advanced age, depressive symptoms, poorer sleep quality and poorer quality of health were positively associated with more self-reported SCD in all models. No race or ethnicity differences were found in association with SCD. Males who reported alcohol and tobacco use or underweight BMI had higher ECog scores compared with females.

CONCLUSION

In addition to well-established risk factors for cognitive decline, such as age, our study consistently and robustly identified a strong association between psychosocial factors and self-reported cognitive decline in an online cohort. These findings provide further evidence that psychosocial health plays a pivotal role in comprehending the risk of SCD and early-stage cognitive ageing. Our findings emphasise the significance of psychosocial factors within the broader context of cardiovascular and demographic risk factors.