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Cancellation test performance in African American, Hispanic, and White elderly

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 May 2004

DESIREE A. BYRD ,
PEGAH TOURADJI ,
MING-XIN TANG  and
JENNIFER J. MANLY
DESIREE A. BYRD
Affiliation:
G. H. Sergievsky Center, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY
PEGAH TOURADJI
Affiliation:
G. H. Sergievsky Center, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY
MING-XIN TANG
Affiliation:
G. H. Sergievsky Center, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY Division of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY
JENNIFER J. MANLY
Affiliation:
G. H. Sergievsky Center, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY Department of Neurology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY Cognitive Neuroscience Division, Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimer's Disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY
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Abstract

Shape and letter cancellation test performance was investigated among large samples of African American, Hispanic, and White non-demented elders. Ethnic minority elders took significantly longer to complete both tasks compared to Whites. An index of task efficiency, which simultaneously measures time and accuracy, suggested that slower time by minority elders was not related to a measurable effort to achieve greater accuracy. The frequency of commission errors was greater in our sample than in previous reports, especially among ethnic minority elders. Although significant differences were observed between the ethnic groups when matched for years of education, equating for literacy level eliminated all performance differences between African Americans and Whites on both cancellation tasks. (JINS, 2004, 10, 401–411.)

Keywords

Cancellation testsCognitive styleEthnicity differences
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 10 , Issue 3 , May 2004 , pp. 401 - 411
Copyright
© 2004 The International Neuropsychological Society

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