Development of the Subjective Memory Complaints Questionnaire.
OBJECTIVE
We aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Subjective Memory Complaints Questionnaire (SMCQ).


METHODS
The reliability of the SMCQ was evaluated by testing its internal consistency and test-retest reliability. Pearson correlation analyses were performed to assess the concurrent validity. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to evaluate the construct validity. Diagnostic ability for dementia was tested with receiver operator characteristic curve analyses.


RESULTS
Cronbach's alpha coefficient and intraclass correlation coefficients of the SMCQ were 0.864 and 0.828 (p < 0.001), respectively. The SMCQ scores were significantly correlated with the scores on Camdex Memory Complaint Questionnaire, Seoul Informant Report Questionnaire for Dementia and cognitive tests from the CERAD (Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease) neuropsychological test battery (p < 0.01). The results of confirmatory factor analyses confirmed that the SMCQ consisted of subjective memory complaints (SMC) for general memory and for everyday memory. The SMCQ score discriminated well between nondemented elderly without dementia and those with dementia (p < 0.01). The area under the curve value of the SMCQ was 0.84, indicating that it had high diagnostic ability.


CONCLUSIONS
The SMCQ was found to be a brief, reliable and valid questionnaire for evaluating SMC. It might be useful for evaluating the cognition of elderly subjects when reliable informants are not available.
Youn
Jong Chul
JC
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Kyunggi Provincial Hospital for the Elderly, Yongin, Korea.
Kim
Ki Woong
KW
Lee
Dong Young
DY
Jhoo
Jin Hyeong
JH
Lee
Seok Bum
SB
Park
Joon Hyuk
JH
Choi
Eun Ae
EA
Choe
Jin Yeong
JY
Jeong
Ji Woon
JW
Choo
Il Han
IH
Woo
Jong Inn
JI
D000368:Aged; D003704:Dementia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008569:Memory Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D012372:ROC Curve; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires