Practice Effects Associated with the Repeated Assessment of Cognitive Function Using the CogState Battery at 10-minute, One Week and One Month Test-retest Intervals

There are many situations in which cognitive tests need to be administered on more than two occasions and at very brief test-retest intervals to detect change in group performance. However, previous literature has not specifically addressed these important issues. The main aim of the current study was to examine these two factors by using a computerized cognitive battery designed specifically for the repeated assessment of cognition (i.e., CogState) in healthy young adult individuals. A further aim of the study was to examine how many times the battery needed to be completed before performance, as measured by the battery, stabilized. Forty-five adults (age range: 18–40 years) completed the battery four times at 10-minute test-retest intervals, and a fifth time at an interval of one week. The results illustrated that when brief test-retest intervals were used (i.e., 10 minutes), performance stabilized after the second assessment, as significant practice effects were generally observed between the first and...