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- 2019
Apathy in Preclinical Alzheimer’s Disease: Psychometric Validation of the Apathy Evaluation ScaleKeywords: apathy,Apathy Evaluation Scale,Alzheimer’s disease,cognitively healthy middle-aged individuals,preclinical Alzheimer’s disease Abstract: The purpose of the present study was to validate the Apathy Evaluation Scale, self-rated version (AES-S), and assess the severity of apathy in a cognitively healthy middle-aged cohort at risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Three hundred and sixteen middle-aged adults were selected to represent a subset of the Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center Clinical Core: the Investigating Memory in People At-risk, Causes and Treatments cohort. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with varimax rotation identified 3 subscales: apathy, disinterest, and social withdrawal factors. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the EFA findings. Results indicated acceptable convergent and discriminant validity. The AES-S is a reliable instrument to quantify apathy in cognitively healthy middle-aged individuals at risk for AD. This study demonstrates the AES-S is a psychometrically sound measurement tool for assessing levels of apathy in a cognitively healthy middle-aged cohort at risk for AD
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