title: Reliability of the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure in use with memory-impaired patients.
abstract: Rater reliability was evaluated for the system most widely used to assess copy and recall of the Rey Complex Figure: the Osterrieth (1944) 18-item scoring system. The study sample consisted of 95 subjects (49 males, 46 females), most of whom were elderly individuals (M = 59.83, SD = 15.21 years) suffering from memory impairment. Four raters rated copy and delayed-recall protocols, and three raters re-rated the protocols after an interval of 3 months. Results revealed excellent inter- and intra-rater reliability coefficients (.85-.97) for total scores. However, reliabilities for the 18 individual items ranged from poor (.14) to excellent (.96). Differences in both reliability and level of subject performance were observed as a function of item and conditions of copy versus recall. It is concluded that the Osterrieth scoring system supports excellent reliability in use with memory-impaired patients using total scores. Nevertheless, individual-item reliability would benefit from enhancement, for example, via amplified delineation of relevant decision criteria.
authors.affiliation: Division of Medical Psychology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
authors.forename: L A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Tupler
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Welsh
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Asare-Aboagye
authors.forename: D V
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Dawson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D000647:Amnesia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D001288:Attention; D001925:Brain Damage, Chronic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015588:Observer Variation; D009949:Orientation; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D011594:Psychometrics; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D015203:Reproducibility of Results