The misplaced-objects task: a brief test for memory dysfunction in the aged.
A brief, simple test for memory dysfunction in the aged is presented. Materials for the test consist of: 1) a board on which the cross-section of a seven-room house is imprinted, and 2) representations of 10 objects frequently misplaced in the home (e.g., keys). The task of the subject is to place the objects in rooms on the board and, after an interval of 5--30 minutes, to recall the location of each object. The measure is appropriate for a broad range of aged subjects, since performance requirements are minimal and readily apparent. The task has obvious face validity, which is essential for maintaining appropriate motivation in many aged subjects. Discriminate validity was demonstrated in a study in which significantly fewer objects were recalled by 60 aged persons with memory impairment (-x = 6.0) than by 44 unimpaired aged persons (-x = 8.9) or 63 young normal persons (-x = 9.9). Satisfactory test-retest reliability was demonstrated by a correlation of .84 between performances on two consecutive days in a subgroup of 20 impaired patients. Subjects appeared to enjoy the game-like structure of the test and clearly were not threatened by the test procedures. Suggestions are offered for further development of the measure.
D000368:Aged; D006801:Humans; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011939:Mental Recall; D008722:Methods