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Frequency of perseveration in normal subjects.
A Ramage1, K Bayles, N Helm-Estabrooks
1National Center for Neurogenic Communication Disorders, University of Arizona, USA.
Brain and Language
|April 7, 1999
Summary
Perseveration, a sign of brain dysfunction, also appears in healthy people. This study found that 4% of responses were perseverative in normal individuals, regardless of age or gender.
Area of Science:
- Neuropsychology
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neurology
Background:
- Perseveration is a known indicator of impaired brain function.
- However, perseveration also occurs in individuals without diagnosed brain damage.
- Understanding its frequency in healthy populations is crucial for clinical interpretation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantify the frequency of perseveration in healthy young and older adults.
- To establish a baseline for normal perseverative responses.
- To determine if age or gender influences perseveration frequency.
Main Methods:
- Recruited 30 young (20-35 years) and 30 older (60-75 years) healthy adults.
- Administered four neuropsychological tasks known to elicit perseveration in brain-damaged individuals.
- Analyzed response patterns to identify and count perseverative errors.
Main Results:
- Overall, 4% of all responses across all participants were perseverative.
- No statistically significant differences in perseveration frequency were found based on age group or gender.
- The Modified Wisconsin Card Sorting Test yielded the highest number of perseverative responses among the tasks used.
Conclusions:
- Perseveration occurs at a low frequency (4%) in healthy individuals.
- Age and gender do not appear to significantly affect the occurrence of perseveration in normal subjects.
- The Modified Wisconsin Card Sorting Test is a sensitive measure for eliciting perseveration, even in healthy individuals.