Study of the psychometric qualities of a brief battery of social cognition in elderly people participating in a community center

Abstract

Social cognition is the individual's ability to interpret and predict the behaviour of others, based on their beliefs and intentions, as well as interacting in social environments and relating. The investigation of social cognition can be carried out through the evaluation of the Recognition of Facial Expressions of Emotions and/or Theory of Mind tasks. Studies indicate that individuals aged 60 years or older present impairment in social cognition. Currently, there are instruments for screening dementias, through the global assessment of cognition, however, these tools do not assess social cognition. Therefore, it is necessary developing brief and easy-to-apply tests to assist in the evaluation of this domain. Thus, the objective of this study is to determine the psychometric characteristics of a Brief Battery of Social Cognition in elderly participants in a community centre. Method: This is a cross-sectional, descriptive, and analytical study with psychometric characteristics. It is expected to evaluate at least 100 individuals aged 60 years or older. The following instruments will be used: Addenbrooke's Cognitive Examination - revised version - (ACE-R), Geriatric depression scale version with 15 items (GDS), Reading the mind in the eyes (RMET), REFE task (static stimuli) and the Brief Social Cognition Battery. The study intends to evaluate internal consistency, convergent validity, and test-retest reliability of the Brief Social Cognition Battery.