Date of Submission

2026

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Department

Psychology

Department Chair

Stephanie Felgoise, PhD, ABPP

First Advisor

Donald Masey, PsyD

Second Advisor

Brad Rosenfield, PsyD

Third Advisor

Michael Roberts, PsyD

Abstract

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease that is primarily characterized by memory impairment and decline in function. Patients often undergo lengthy neuropsychological evaluations that create testing fatigue and, ultimately, affect their validity. There are brief assessment options to assess probable AD that are not commonly explored in research and clinical settings. This study investigated the predictive ability of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) with the addition of a semantic fluency measure compared to the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-13-Item Cognitive Subscale (ADAS-Cog-13) in diagnosing AD. Additionally, this study examined the potential use of the ADAS-Cog-13 in clinical settings, as it is regarded as a measure for clinical trials. Data were analyzed from a sample of 533 individuals obtained from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) database to explore the efficacy of these instruments in predicting the diagnosis of AD as well as the relationship between executive dysfunction, biological sex, and functional status as measured by the Functional Activities Questionnaire (FAQ). Results indicated that the MMSE supplemented with semantic fluency improved the predictive accuracy in identifying individuals with AD and demonstrated similar predictive utility to the MoCA. However, the MMSE combined with semantic fluency was not more sensitive than the ADAS-Cog-13 in predicting an AD diagnosis. Analyses examining functional outcomes revealed a weak but statistically significant positive correlation between executive dysfunction and functional difficulties. Results revealed no statistically significant difference between males and females on their performance on the FAQ and ADAS-Cog-13 subtest. Together, brief cognitive screeners, specifically the MMSE with the addition of a semantic fluency measure, can offer a practical approach to predict a diagnosis of AD.

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