title: Reliable Change on Memory Tests is Common in Healthy Children and Adolescents.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Neuropsychologists interpret a large number of scores in their assessments, including numerous retest scores to determine change over time. The rate at which healthy children and adolescents obtain reliably improved or declined memory scores when retested has yet to be explored. The purpose of this study was to illustrate the prevalence of reliable change scores on memory test batteries in healthy children and adolescents.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were children and adolescents from test-retest samples from two published memory test batteries (ChAMP and CMS). Reliable change scores (RCI with 90% confidence interval and practice effects) were calculated for the indexes and subtests of each battery. Multivariate base rates involved considering all change scores simultaneously within each battery and calculating the frequencies of healthy children obtaining one or more reliably declined or one or more reliably improved scores.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Across both memory batteries, one or more reliably changed index or subtest score was common; however, reliable change on three or more scores was uncommon (i.e., found in <5% of the samples). Base rates of change scores did not differ by parent education.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Having a single reliably changed score on retest is common when interpreting these memory batteries. Multivariate interpretation is necessary when determining cognitive decline and cognitive recovery. Further research is warranted with other measures, other samples, and different retest intervals.
authors.affiliation: Neurosciences Program (Brain Injury and Rehabilitation), Alberta Children's Hospital, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.|Departments of Paediatrics, Clinical Neurosciences, and Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.|Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Brian L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Brooks
authors.affiliation: Pearson Clinical Assessment, San Antonio, TX, USA.
authors.forename: James A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Holdnack
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Harvard Medical School, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital & Mass General Hospital for Children Sport Concussion Program, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Grant L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Iverson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Cognition; Multivariate; Psychometrics; RCI; Test–retest