A - 41 The Association between Education, Literacy, and Performance on the Loewenstein-Acevedo Scale for Semantic Interference and Learning (LASSI-L) in African American (AA) Older Adults

Abstract Objective The LASSI-L, a cognitive challenge test, has been found to be highly discriminative between AA elders with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) versus cognitively unimpaired (CU) counterparts. Given potentially lower levels of formal education and literacy in some AA groups, it is important to determine whether such factors might adversely influence performance. Methods 41 AA adults (53.7% males), with a mean age of 63.9 (SD = 5.1 years, range = 54–83) were deemed to be CU after a clinical interview resulted in a CDR = 0, and scores from a neuropsychological battery were deemed normal by experienced neuropsychologists. The LASSI-L was not used in diagnosis. Results Level of educational attainment was 13.3 (SD = 2.3 years: range = 9–20). Level of reading literacy, as assessed by the WRAT-4, yielded an average grade equivalent (GE) of 9.6 (SD = 3.5 range = 2.0–12.9); substantially lower than reported educational attainment. Association between formal education and literacy was 0.52 which accounted for 27% of the shared variance. There were no statistically significant correlations between formal education or WRAT-4 scores in any LASSI-L variables, including initial learning (Cued Recall 2 List A), proactive semantic interference (PSI) (Cued List B1-List B2), failure to recover from PSI, or semantic intrusion errors. Conclusions Performance on the LASSI-L among AA-CU did not suggest biases associated with formal education or word literacy, making it a promising tool for research. Many neuropsychological measures do not have acceptable diagnostic accuracy when used among individuals that are racially diverse, have lower-education levels, and lower socioeconomic status. This is important in consideration for potential use of LASSI-L in clinical settings.