Awareness of cognitive abilities in the execution of activities of daily living after acquired brain injury: an evaluation protocol

IntroductionOne of the main limitations that can be observed after acquired brain injury (ABI) is the alteration of the awareness of the deficits that can occur in the cognitive skills necessary for performing activities of daily living (ADL). According to the Dynamic Comprehensive Model of Awareness (DCMA), consciousness is composed of offline component, which contains the information stored about characteristics of the tasks and stable beliefs about one’s own capabilities and online awareness, which is activated in the context of the performance of a specific task. The main objective of this project was to generate and validate a detailed cognitive assessment protocol within the context of ADL to evaluate the components of DCMA.Methods and analysisThe proposed protocol consists of two ecological tools: The Cog-Awareness ADL Scale to measure offline component and the Awareness ADL-task: Basic and Instrumental ADL performance-based test to measure online awareness. The aim is to identify the presence of cognitive deficits and anosognosia in patients with ABI within the context of everyday life activities. These two measures will be administered to a group of patients with ABI. In addition, these participants will complete another series of classic tests on anosognosia and cognitive functions in order to find the convergent validity of the two tests proposed in this protocol. The external validity of the Cog-Awareness ADL Scale and the relationships between awareness components within the same ADL domain will be also analysed.Ethics and disseminationThis study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Biomedical Research of Andalusia, on 13 January /2017 (Proceeding 1/2017). All participants are required to provide written informed consent. The findings from this will be disseminated via scientific publication.Trial registration numberNCT03712839.

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The relationship between neuropsychological functioning and instrumental activities of daily living following acquired brain injury

Applied Neuropsychology ◽

10.1080/09084282.1995.9645347 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 2 (3-4) ◽

pp. 107-115 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

J.E. Farmer ◽

A.M. Eakman

Keyword(s):

Brain Injury ◽

Activities Of Daily Living ◽

Daily Living ◽

Neuropsychological Functioning ◽

Acquired Brain Injury ◽

Instrumental Activities ◽

The Relationship

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An Investigation of the Validity of the Edinburgh Social Cognition Test (ESCoT) in Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617721001223 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-13

Author(s):

Blanca Poveda ◽

Sharon Abrahams ◽

R. Asaad Baksh ◽

Sarah E. MacPherson ◽

Jonathan J. Evans

Keyword(s):

Social Cognition ◽

Brain Injury ◽

Test Performance ◽

Cognitive Abilities ◽

Convergent Validity ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Acquired Brain Injury ◽

Rehabilitation Service ◽

General Ability ◽

And Performance

Abstract Objectives: Social cognition is frequently impaired following an acquired brain injury (ABI) but often overlooked in clinical assessments. There are few validated and appropriate measures of social cognitive abilities for ABI patients. The current study examined the validity of the Edinburgh Social Cognition Test (ESCoT, Baksh et al., 2018) in measuring social cognition following an ABI. Methods: Forty-one patients with ABI were recruited from a rehabilitation service and completed measures of general ability, executive functions and social cognition (Faux Pas; FP, Reading the Mind in the Eyes; RME, Social Norms Questionnaire; SNQ and the ESCoT). Forty-one controls matched on age, sex and years of education also performed the RME, SNQ and ESCoT. Results: A diagnosis of ABI was significantly associated with poorer performance on all ESCoT measures and RME while adjusting for age, sex and years of education. In ABI patients, the ESCoT showed good internal consistency with its subcomponents and performance correlated with the other measures of social cognition demonstrating convergent validity. Better Trail Making Test performance predicted better ESCoT total, RME and SNQ scores. Higher TOPF IQ was associated with higher RME scores, while higher WAIS-IV working memory predicted better FP performance. Conclusions: The ESCoT is a brief, valid and internally consistent assessment tool able to detect social cognition deficits in neurological patients. Given the prevalence of social cognition deficits in ABI and the marked impact these can have on an individual’s recovery, this assessment can be a helpful addition to a comprehensive neuropsychological assessment.

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