Assessing Older Adults' Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Symptoms: Psychometric Characteristics of the Obsessive...

Area of Science:

• Geriatric Psychiatry
• Clinical Psychology
• Psychometric Validation

Background:

• Limited validated OCD symptom measures for older adults impede research and treatment.
• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) can affect individuals across the lifespan, yet specific assessment tools for geriatric populations are scarce.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R) as a valid measure for assessing OCD symptoms in adults aged 65 and older.
• Determine the psychometric properties and clinical utility of the OCI-R in a geriatric sample.

Main Methods:

• The study involved 180 participants aged 65 and older who completed the OCI-R and other assessments up to four times over 18 months.
• Psychometric properties of the OCI-R were analyzed, including its latent structure and predictive validity for future OCD symptoms.

Main Results:

• The OCI-R demonstrated a robust and well-replicated latent structure (Washing, Checking, Ordering, Obsessing, Hoarding, Neutralizing).
• OCI-R total scores significantly predicted clinician-assessed OCD symptoms 18 months later.
• Self-report measures of worry, anxiety, and depression did not predict future OCD symptoms.

Conclusions:

• The OCI-R is a valid and effective tool for measuring OCD symptoms in older adults.
• Further replication studies with diverse geriatric samples are recommended to confirm these findings.