Comparison of the California Verbal Learning Test and the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test in head-injured patients

Performances of moderate and severe closed-head-injury patients were compared on the California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT) and Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT). Results showed that raw scores were highly correlated between tests. There were no significant between-test differences in mean raw scores. However, standard scores calculated from existing CVLT and RAVLT norms were significantly lower on the CVLT than on the RAVLT. Furthermore, there were differences between the various RAVLT norm sets. The results indicate that although the CVLT and RAVLT measure similar cognitive processes in closed-head-injury patients, there are major discrepancies in test interpretation using existing norms. Test and norm set selection significantly influence the likelihood of a patient being classified as memory-impaired.