Tower of London test

For the British palace, see Tower of London.

Screenshot of the PEBL psychology software running the Tower of London test

The Tower of London test is a well-known test used in applied clinical neuropsychology for the assessment of executive functioning specifically to detect deficits in planning,^[1]^[2] which may occur due to a variety of medical and neuropsychiatric conditions. It is related to the classic problem-solving puzzle known as the Tower of Hanoi.

The test consists of two boards with pegs and several beads with different colors. The examiner (usually a clinical psychologist or a neuropsychologist) uses the beads and the boards to present the examinee with problem-solving tasks. Several variants of the test exist. Shallice's original test used three beads and pegs with different heights, although later researchers have generalized this to more beads without a peg height restriction.^[3] Versions of the test are available from a number of sources, including a stand-alone test by William Culbertson and Eric Zillmer (published by Drexel University) and a child/adolescent version that is part of the original NEPSY neuropsychological battery of tests by Marit Korkman, Ursula Kirk, and Sally Kemp (although removed from the second edition). A computerised variant, known as the Stockings of Cambridge test, is available as part of the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB).

One common use is for diagnosis of executive impairment. The performance of the examinee is compared to representative samples of individuals of the same age to derive hypotheses about the person's executive cognitive ability, especially as it may relate to brain damage. A certain degree of controversy surrounds the test's construct validity.^[4]

References

↑ Shallice, T. (1982). "Specific impairments of planning". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences. 298 (1089): 199–209. doi:10.1098/rstb.1982.0082. PMID 6125971.
↑ Phillips, LH; et al. (2001). "Mental planning and the Tower of London task". Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology - Section A-Human Experimental Psychology. 54 (2): 579–597. doi:10.1080/713755977. PMID 11394063.
↑ Phillips, L. H.; V. Wynn; K. J. Gilhooly; S. Della Sala; R. H. Logie (1999). "The role of memory in the Tower of London task". Memory. 7 (2): 209–231. doi:10.1080/741944066. PMID 10645380.
↑ KAFER, K. L.; M. HUNTER (1997). "On Testing the Face Validity of Planning/Problem-Solving Tasks in a Normal Population". Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society. 3 (2): 108–119. Retrieved 2010-03-04.

External links

Neuropsychological tests

Battery	Cognistat Halstead-Reitan Neuropsychological Battery Luria-Nebraska neuropsychological battery Montreal Cognitive Assessment Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status

Arousal/Attention	Continuous Performance Task d2 Test of Attention Four boxes test Galveston Orientation and Amnesia Test Morningness-eveningness questionnaire Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test Posner cueing task Test of everyday attention Test of Variables of Attention

Sensation/Perception	Bender-Gestalt Test Benton Visual Retention Test Dot cancellation test Judgment of Line Orientation Navon figure Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure

Memory	1-2-AX working memory task California Verbal Learning Test Corsi block-tapping test Digit symbol substitution test Doors and People MCI Screen Test of Memory Malingering Wechsler Memory Scale

Language	Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination Boston Naming Test Comprehensive Aphasia Test Controlled Oral Word Association Test Thurstone Word Fluency Test Token Test

Motor	Compensatory tracking task Purdue Pegboard Test

Problem-solving	Delis–Kaplan Executive Function System Hayling and Brixton tests Tower of London-Drexel University Trail Making Test Wisconsin Card Sorting Test

Sleep	Epworth Sleepiness Scale

Specific impairments	British Columbia Postconcussion Symptom Inventory Clinical Dementia Rating Digit Cancellation Test (Alzheimer's) Disability Rating Scale Florida Cognitive Activities Scale Glasgow Coma Scale Glasgow Outcome Scale Pediatric Attention Disorders Diagnostic Screener Rivermead post-concussion symptoms questionnaire

Intelligence	National Adult Reading Test Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence Wechsler Test of Adult Reading

Bed-side	Abbreviated mental test score Addenbrooke's cognitive examination Brief Cognitive Assessment Tool General Practitioner Assessment Of Cognition Mini–mental state examination

Social	Vineland Social Maturity Scale

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Tower of London test

References

Further reading

External links