Effects of Age and Intelligence on Trail Making Test Performance and Validity

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Abstract
The literature contains evidence that age and intelligence affect Trail Making Test (TMT) performance and probably its validity as a screening device for organicity. This study systematically explored the nature of these effects. The TMT and WAIS were administered to 93 brain-damaged patients and 106 control patients, ranging in age from 20 to 72 yr. The results showed that: (1) TMT performance decreased with age, as did TMT validity; (2) TMT performance increased with intelligence; and (3) Reitan's (1958) cut-off point misclassified half the control patients, the misclassification rate increasing markedly with age. The results clearly indicate the need for local age-corrected norms.