Informant Reporting in Mild Cognitive Impairment: Sources of Discrepancy on the Functional Activities Questionnaire
Year: 2020
Type: article
Abstract: OBJECTIVE: Relative to dementia, little is known about informant bias in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). We investigated the influence of informant demographic and relational characteristics on reports of everyday functioning using the Functional Activities Questionnaire (FAQ). METHOD: Four thousand two hundred eighty-four MCI participants and their informants from the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center Uniform Data Set were included. Informants were stratified according to cohabitation, relationship, visit frequency, race/ethnicity, education, and sex. Informant-rated Mean FAQ score was compared across these groups using univariate general linear model analyses and post hoc tests. Interactions were tested between informant variables. The predictive contribution of informant variables to FAQ score was explored using hierarchical linear regression. Analyses covaried for participant cognition using a cognitive composite score, and for participant age, sex, and depression. RESULTS: After controlling for participant cognition, depression, age, and sex, informant-rated FAQ scores varied significantly across all informant variables (p's < .005, ηp2's ≤ .033) except sex and visit frequency. FAQ scores were higher (more impaired) among informants who cohabitate with the participant, among paid caregivers, spouses, and adult children, and among informants with higher levels of education. Scores were lowest (less impaired) among Black/African American informants as compared to all other racial/ethnic groups. CONCLUSIONS: Demographic and relational characteristics of informants influence the perception and reporting of instrumental activities of daily living in adults with MCI. As everyday functioning is crucial for differential diagnosis and treatment outcome measurement, it is important to be aware of sources of informant report discrepancies.
Institution: Temple University
Language: English
Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: National Institute on Aging
Awards: Michigan Alzheimer's Disease Core Center, UC Davis Alzheimer's Disease Core Center, Indiana Alzheimer Disease Center, Wake Forest Alzheimer's Disease Core Center, University of Kentucky Alzheimer's Disease Core Center, Neurobiology of Alzheimer's Disease and Aging, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center, UCSD Alzheimer's Disease Research Center P50, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Alzheimer's Disease Core Center, The Alzheimer's Disease Research Center at the University of California, Irvine, Stanford Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Oregon Alzheimer's Disease Center, Rush Alzheimer's Disease Core Center, Alzheimer's Disease Core Center, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center - Overall, Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, University of Kansas Alzheimer's Disease Core Centers, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Alzheimer Disease Research Center, Yale Alzheimer Disease Research Center, Arizona Alzheimer's Disease Core Center, Johns Hopkins Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Boston University Alzheimer's Disease Center, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Massachusetts Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Alzheimer's Disease Core Center, Emory Alzheimer's Disease Center, University of Florida - Mt. Sinai Medical Center AD Research Center, Feasibility of the SmartPrompt for Improving Everyday Function in Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center, New Approaches to Dementia Heterogeneity, Mayo Alzheimer's Disease Research Center
OpenAlex ID: W3000831789