Profiling abstract reasoning: the role of verbal-conceptual tasks in distinguishing cognitive health from impairment
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: reasoning is a clinically relevant component of higher-order cognition, but verbally mediated measures may reflect both relational reasoning and language- and knowledge-based abilities. We compared performance on two Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) verbal-conceptual tasks-Similarities and Comprehension-among cognitively healthy older adults and individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or severe cognitive impairment (SCI). In this cross-sectional memory-clinic study, 54 Persian-speaking adults aged 60 years or older were recruited into healthy control, MCI, and SCI groups (18 participants per group). Cognitive status was determined through neurologist assessment, Addenbrooke’s Cognitive Examination results, and available clinical investigations. Verbal-conceptual abstraction was assessed using WAIS Similarities and Comprehension. Group differences were examined using analysis of variance and pairwise comparisons; Cohen’s d with 95% confidence intervals was calculated. Age-adjusted analyses of covariance and regression models assessing sex and education were also performed. Healthy controls had higher mean Comprehension scores than participants with MCI (23.33 vs. 16.50; d = 1.64, 95% CI 0.88–2.40; p = 0.020) and SCI (23.33 vs. 12.32; d = 1.95, 95% CI 1.15–2.75; p = 0.003). Similarly, Similarities scores were higher in healthy controls than in participants with MCI (21.92 vs. 12.75; d = 1.59, 95% CI 0.84–2.35; p = 0.010) and SCI (21.92 vs. 5.11; d = 4.03, 95% CI 2.87–5.19; p < 0.001). Differences between MCI and SCI were not statistically significant for Comprehension ( p = 0.800) or Similarities ( p = 0.100). Group effects remained statistically significant after adjustment for age. In this cross-sectional Persian-speaking clinical sample, MCI and SCI were associated with lower performance on WAIS Similarities and Comprehension than cognitively healthy status. These verbal-conceptual measures may complement memory-focused cognitive assessment; however, they should not be interpreted as stand-alone diagnostic markers because performance is also influenced by language, semantic knowledge, education, and etiologic heterogeneity. Larger longitudinal studies with etiologically characterized samples are needed. Not applicable.
Source: BMC Neurology
Language: English
Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,090
OpenAlex ID: W7225732154
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