TY - JOUR
T1 - Disentangling the relationship between cognitive estimation abilities and executive functions: a study on patients with Parkinson's disease
AU - D’Aniello, Guido Edoardo
AU - Scarpina, Federica
AU - Albani, Giovanni
AU - Castelnuovo, Gianluca
AU - Mauro, Alessandro
PY - 2015
Y1 - 2015
N2 - The cognitive estimation test (CET) measures cognitive estimation abilities: it assesses the ability to apply reasoning strategies to answer questions that usually cannot lead to a clear and exact reply. Since it requires the activation of an intricate ensemble of cognitive functions, there is an ongoing debate in the literature regarding whether the CET represents a measurement of global cognitive abilities or a pure measure of executive functions. In the present study, CET together with a neuropsychological assessment focused on executive functions was administered in thirty patients with Parkinson's disease without signs of dementia. The CET correlated with measures of verbal working memory and semantic knowledge, but not with other dimensions of executive domains, such as verbal phonemic fluency, ability to manage real-world interferences, or visuospatial reasoning. According to our results, cognitive estimation abilities appeared to trigger a defined cognitive path that includes executive functions, namely, working memory and semantic knowledge.
AB - The cognitive estimation test (CET) measures cognitive estimation abilities: it assesses the ability to apply reasoning strategies to answer questions that usually cannot lead to a clear and exact reply. Since it requires the activation of an intricate ensemble of cognitive functions, there is an ongoing debate in the literature regarding whether the CET represents a measurement of global cognitive abilities or a pure measure of executive functions. In the present study, CET together with a neuropsychological assessment focused on executive functions was administered in thirty patients with Parkinson's disease without signs of dementia. The CET correlated with measures of verbal working memory and semantic knowledge, but not with other dimensions of executive domains, such as verbal phonemic fluency, ability to manage real-world interferences, or visuospatial reasoning. According to our results, cognitive estimation abilities appeared to trigger a defined cognitive path that includes executive functions, namely, working memory and semantic knowledge.
KW - Parkinson's disease
KW - executive functions
KW - Parkinson's disease
KW - executive functions
UR - http://hdl.handle.net/10807/66283
U2 - 10.1007/s10072-015-2158-5
DO - 10.1007/s10072-015-2158-5
M3 - Article
SN - 1590-1874
SP - 1
EP - 5
JO - Neurological Sciences
JF - Neurological Sciences
ER -