• Description (task duration: self-paced, approximately 10-20 minutes): This a paper and pencil task.  Participants compare a target word with five other words and select the one word that means the same or most nearly the same as the target word. The task is divided into 2 sections.  Participants are given 4 minutes per section to select 18 synonyms (or 36 trials total).
• Scoring: Participants’ scores are penalized for wrong answers; total score equals total number of items correct – .25*(number of items incorrect).  Higher scores indicate better vocabulary.

Primary Reference:

Ekstrom, R. B., French, J. W., Harman, H., & Derman, D. (1976). Kit of factor-referenced
cognitive tests (rev. ed.). Princeton, NJ: Educational Testing Service.

• Description (task duration: self-paced, approximately 10-20 minutes): This a paper and pencil task. Participants compare a target word with four other words and select the one that means the same or most nearly the same as the target word. This task is not timed and there are 40 trials.
• Scoring: Final score is the total number of items correct.  Higher scores indicate better vocabulary.

Primary Reference:

Zachary, A. & Shipley, W. C. (1986). Shipley Institute of Living Scale. RevisedManual. Los
Angeles, CA: Western Psychological Services.

• Description (task duration: approximately 10-15 minutes): Thirty-line drawings are present on a computer screen, one at a time, with increasing difficulty. Participants must orally identify the exact name of each drawing (e.g., kangaroo, bellows). This task is not timed.
• Scoring: Final score is the total number of items correct.  Higher scores indicate better vocabulary.

Primary Reference:

Robbins, T.W., James, M., Owen, A.M., Sahakian, B.J., McInnes, L., Rabbitt, P. (1994).
Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB): A factor analytic
study of a large sample of normal elderly volunteers. Dementia, 5, 266-281. https://doi.org/10.1159/000106735

Software Reference:

CantabEclipse. Cambridge Cognition (2007).
https://www.cambridgecognition.com/cantab/cognitive-tests/graded-naming-test-gnt/

• Description (task duration: 3 minutes): Participants see a series of letters and words presented one at a time on the computer screen and are to give the correct pronunciation for that series of letters or word. Items are presented in order of difficulty; the iPad adjusts the difficulty level of items depending on the participant’s performance. The number of items presented will depend on age and performance; for most participants, the measure will last approximately 3 minutes and will contain about 25 items. The iPad will administer each item one by one, in an untimed fashion, until the test is completed.  The examiner is responsible for recording whether each response is correct.
• Scoring: Participants are given credit for each series of letters or word pronounced correctly. Multiple dependent variables are provided via NIH Toolbox: (1) the NIH Oral Reading Recognition Task Theta score represents the overall ability or performance of the participant, (2) the NIH Oral Reading Recognition Task Standard Error represents the standard error, (3) the NIH Oral Reading Recognition Task Uncorrected Standard Score uses a standard score metric (normative mean=100, SD=15) and compares the participant’s score to the entire NIH Toolbox nationally representative normative sample, (4) the NIH Oral Reading Recognition Task Age-Corrected Standard Score compares the participant’s score to scores of participants of the same age in the NIH Toolbox nationally representative normative sample, (5) the NIH Oral Reading Recognition Task National Percentile (age adjusted) represents the percentage of participants the test-taker scored higher than when being compared to participants of the same age, (6) the NIH Oral Reading Recognition Task Fully-Corrected T-score represents the performance of the participant in comparison to the NIH Toolbox nationally representative normative sample, while adjusting for key demographic values.

Primary Reference:

Gershon, Richard C et al. “NIH toolbox for assessment of neurological and behavioral function.”
Neurology vol. 80,11 Suppl 3 (2013): S2-6. doi:10.1212/WNL.0b013e3182872e5f

Software Reference:

NIH Toolbox for the iPad test ver. 2.1
https://nihtoolbox.force.com/s/article/nih-toolbox-scoring-and-interpretation-guide

Note: Please note the differences in administration for this task across the three waves of data collection. Participants in DLBS Wave 2 performed NIH Toolbox Oral Reading Recognition Task on a desktop computer, whereas participants in DLBS Wave 3 performed the task on an iPad. This change was mandated by developers and standardized scores will differ between the two forms of administration. For additional details, we refer you to the NIH Toolbox website: https://www.healthmeasures.net/explore-measurement-systems/nih-toolbox/obtain-and-administer-measures.