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Assessment of Dementia: Screening for Cognitive Decline with Asian Clients

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Guide to Psychological Assessment with Asians

Abstract

In this chapter we review the literature on cognitive decline and dementia in Asian elders with a specific focus on the Mini-Mental Status Examination, Montreal Cognitive Assessment, the Hasegawa Dementia Scale Revised, the Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument, the SEOL, and the Clinical Dementia Rating. In our review of the literature we found that (1) empirical studies on Asian elders in the USA are very limited; (2) the Asian culture is incredibly broad which makes assessment extraordinarily complex; (3) age, education, and literacy must be taken into account when screening for cognitive impairment or assessing for dementia; (4) each of the screening instruments reviewed can be used to assess for cognitive impairment with some cultural considerations and caveats; (5) level of acculturation and language preference should guide assessment practices; (6) screening for cognitive impairment should occur during routine visits; and (7) where cognitive impairment associated with dementia is suspected collateral contact should be made with reliable informants.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Administrative Faculty, Department of Psychology MS0296, University of Nevada, Reno, NV, 89557, USA

    Lorraine T. Benuto Ph.D.

  2. Northcentral University, Graduate School Faculty, 10000 E University Drive, Prescott Valley, AZ, 86314, USA

    Lorraine T. Benuto Ph.D. & Brian D. Leany Ph.D.

  3. Department of Psychology, University of Nevada-Reno, Reno, NV, 89557, USA

    Katherine A. Wainwright M.A.

  4. Lake’s Crossing Center: Maximum Security Facility for Forensic Mental Health Services, 500 Galletti Way, Sparks, NV, 89504, USA

    Brian D. Leany Ph.D.

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  1. Lorraine T. Benuto Ph.D.
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Correspondence to Lorraine T. Benuto Ph.D. .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Nevada and Northcentral University, Graduate School Faculty, Prescott Valley, AZ, USA, Reno, Nevada, USA

    Lorraine T. Benuto

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, California, USA

    Nicholas S. Thaler

  3. Graduate School Faculty, Prescott Valley, AZ, USA, Lake's Crossing Center: Maximum Security Facility for Forensic Mental Health Services (Reno, NV) & Northcentral University, Reno, Nevada, USA

    Brian D. Leany

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Benuto, L.T., Wainwright, K.A., Leany, B.D. (2014). Assessment of Dementia: Screening for Cognitive Decline with Asian Clients. In: Benuto, L., Thaler, N., Leany, B. (eds) Guide to Psychological Assessment with Asians. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-0796-0_19

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