New directions for analysis of process data from the Rey -Osterrieth Complex Figure Test

Process variables underlying copy strategy for the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test (ROCF) were examined in the context of assessing the cognitive construct of planning. While a number of tests of planning have been developed such as the Tower tests, the ROCF potentially facilitates a more detailed understanding of compromised planning performance.In the current study, quantified process measures were derived to evaluate individual copy approaches to the ROCF and were investigated relative to eight existing qualitative scoring systems. The performances of forty-nine healthy subjects were compared with the performances of fifty-two subjects in a mixed neurological sample. Quantified process measures and scores derived from existing qualitative scoring approaches were examined in relation to a range of psychometric properties including their capacity to produce scores which are normally distributed and to demonstrate variability between subjects. Discriminant validity was also examined, specifically whether process measures thus derived exhibit the ability to discriminate between normal and clinical subjects. Results demonstrated that novel quantified process measures can meaningfully contribute to analysis of performance parameters underlying copy of the ROCF. The relationship between copy approach and recall performance on the ROCF was also examined. Quantified process measures and scores from the existing qualitative scoring systems under study were found to be moderately correlated with recall across both normal and clinical subjects. Study findings were examined in the context of suggested future research and the importance of promoting the use of qualitative scoring systems in the analysis of suboptimal performance on the ROCF.