Longitudinal and psychometric profiles of two cognitive status tests in very old adults

Forty‐four nondemented adults, over the age of 75 years, were tested at six‐month intervals spanning two years. Study goals were to examine the validity of the Mini‐Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale‐Revised (WAIS‐R), to assess the long‐term reliability of these instruments, and to examine the longitudinal profile of this sample. Results showed that the MMSE was moderately correlated with the WAIS‐R. The MMSE had low internal consistency, although the total score behaved reliably across the five occasions. The WAIS‐R scales showed a high degree of internal consistency and test–retest reliability. WAIS‐R performance remained stable across occasions; however, decline was evident in the MMSE subtests of Attention and Language. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Clin Psychol 53: 673–686, 1997.