title: Factor structure and age effects with an aphasia test battery in normal Taiwanese adults.
abstract: This study was designed to explore in a Taiwanese sample the factor structure of an aphasia test battery composed of parts of several standardized aphasia tests. A secondary goal was to assess effects of normal aging on the obtained factors. The sample was 120 healthy Taiwanese adults, ranging in age from 30 to 78 years. Principal-components analysis of the aphasia test battery revealed 5 factors: verbal comprehension, effortful writing, word production, automatized writing, and visuomotor coordination skills. Because the latter 2 factors have common psychological features, they can be combined and reinterpreted as a factor on the mechanics of writing. Further data analysis with factor scores shows that aging unfavorably influences verbal comprehension, effortful writing processing, and word production functions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, National Taiwan University, Taipei.
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Hua
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: S T
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000523:psychology*; D001037:Aphasia / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D013624:Taiwan