Effects of age, education, and living environment on Boston Naming Test performance

The 60-item Boston Naming Test (BNT; Kaplan, Goodglass, & Weintraub, 1983) was administered to 323 normal elderly subjects between the ages of 65 and 97. The combined effects of age, education, and living environment (institutionalized/independent living) on total test score was determined. These three variables accounted for 32% of the variance in BNT performance. Educational background accounted for the greatest proportion of the variance, followed by age and living environment. There was also a significant interaction between age, education, and living environment. Overall, increased age adversely affected BNT scores. However, institutionalized subjects with a sixth-ninth grade education performed poorly on the BNT regardless of age. In addition, there was little difference in BNT performance according to age or living environment for the well educated. (The only exceptions were the oldest institutionalized subjects, who performed poorly on the BNT regardless of level of education.) The data presented in this study should be helpful for those clinicians who administer the BNT to elderly patients who are institutionalized or who have a limited educational background.