The Milwaukee Card Sorting Test
The Milwaukee Card Sorting Test (MCST) is a variation of the Wisconsin Card
Sorting Test (WCST). This variation requires the patient to verbalize which
principle is being used to make the sort. This simple change in procedure allows
several new scores that fractionate executive function into separate,
behaviorally distinct processes. Below is an example of three new
scores made possible by the increased information afforded from the
verbalization:
Preliminary factor analysis has found the Automatic Perseverative
Response (APR) to be a more stable score than the traditional Perseverative
Response score (PR). The APR loads most heavily on the first factor. The
first factor has been interpreted in a geriatric rehabilitation population to represent
difficulty "forming a mental set". The second factor is composed of primary
loading from the Loss of Set (LS) score and represents a difficulty
"maintaining mental set". The third factor is composed primarily of the
Verbal Behavior Discord (VBD) score and represents difficulty "switching
mental set". More information is avialable in a forthcoming article on the
MCST in Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology or by sending an e-mail
message to neuropsy@csd.uwm.edu.
A model of the cognitive process in performing the
MCST is provided in the above mentioned article. Another article addresses the construct validity of the MCST by using traditional frontal lobe tasks as well as
measures of crystallized, non-executive, intellectual ability; premorbid IQ
estimate; and measures of postmorbid cognitive functioning to predict the
various new scores as well as the traditional scores. We currently
have over 300 rehabilitation patients examined and a cluster analysis of
common MCST profiles is in the works.
If you are interested in obtaining instructions for administering
the MCST then e-mail neuropsy@csd.uwm.edu. The MCST requires no
additional testing materials beyond that used with the WCST. All
administration and scoring procedures are provided in a brief manual.
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