Article

This study examined the relation between neuropsychological test performance and
self-reported cognitive complaints following traumatic brain injury (TBI).
Participants were 109 servicemembers from the U.S. military who completed a
neuropsychological evaluation within the first 2 yr following mild-severe TBI.
Measures included the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI), Posttraumatic
Stress Disorder Checklist (PCL-C), Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory (NSI), and
17 select measures from a larger neurocognitive test battery that corresponded to
three self-reported cognitive complaints from the NSI (i.e., memory,
attention/concentration, and processing speed/organization). Self-reported
cognitive complaints were significantly correlated with psychological distress
(PCL-C total: r = 0.50-0.58; half the PAI clinical scales: r = 0.40-0.58). In
contrast, self-reported cognitive complaints were not significantly correlated
with overall neurocognitive functioning (with the exception of five measures).
There was a low rate of agreement between neurocognitive test scores and
self-reported cognitive complaints. For the large minority of the sample
(38.5%-45.9%), self-reported cognitive complaints were reported in the presence
of neurocognitive test scores that fell within normal limits. In sum,
self-reported cognitive complaints were not associated with neurocognitive test
performance, but rather were associated with psychological distress. These
results provide information to contextualize cognitive complaints following TBI.

Langue : ANGLAIS