Effects of Cognition on Quiz Performance, Behavior Change, and Vitality After Energy Conservation Course Among People With Multiple Sclerosis
This secondary analysis of randomized control trial data evaluated the influence of cognitive abilities on the outcomes of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) who participated in a 6-week community-based energy conservation education program. Baseline measures of cognitive status included the four scales from the Neuropsychological Screening Battery for MS: Consistent Long-Term Retrieval Test (CLTR), Word List Generation Test (WLGT), Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test (PASAT), and Spatial Recall Test (SRT). Scores on knowledge quizzes, number of energy conservation strategies used postintervention, and change in SF-36 vitality subscale postintervention were analyzed via multiple regression and generalized estimating equation models. After adjusting for age, education, and sex, only SRT influenced scores on the knowledge quizzes and change in the level of vitality postintervention. CLTR, WLGT, and PASAT scores influenced the use of energy conservation strategies, after similar adjustment. In conclusion, cognitive abilities have a differential influence on outcomes in an energy conservation education program for people with MS. Actual behavior change postintervention was influenced the most by cognitive abilities.