Abstract
Maintaining social skills such as Theory of Mind (ToM) competences is important to counteract the conversion into dementia in Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). Multidimensional nonpharmacological interventions demonstrated their potential in improving cognitive and behavioral abilities; however, little is known about the long-term effect of such interventions on social skills in people with MCI. The aim of this longitudinal study was to monitor ToM competences considering both cognitive and affective domains in an amnestic MCI (aMCI) sample involved in a home-based multistimulation treatment (MST@H). 30 aMCI subjects (M : F = 15 : 15; mean age ± SD = 77.00 ± 4.60) were enrolled, and three steps of evaluation with neuropsychological tests and ToM tasks have been implemented. 21 healthy controls (HC) were also included (M : F = 9 : 12; mean age ± SD = 74.95 ± 3.88) to characterize the aMCI sample regarding differences in ToM performance compared to HC at the baseline evaluation. Our results show that the aMCI group statistically significantly underperformed the HC group only in the advanced ToM tasks, confirming an initial decline of high-level ToM competences in this population. The longitudinal evaluation revealed time changes not only in some subcognitive domains of MoCA (memory and executive functions) but also in cognitive and affective ToM dimensions in aMCI subjects. Our findings suggest that cognitive and affective ToM can be considered useful outcome measures to test the long-term effect of treatment over time.
Highlights
Social cognition refers to the psychological processes that allow individuals to make inference about other people in the context of social interaction [1]
The global cognitive level (MoCA score) was significantly poorer in the amnestic MCI (aMCI) group compared to the healthy controls (HC) group (t = −9:69, p < 0:001)
The comparison between the aMCI group and the HC group showed a significant difference in the total score of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) test (t = −9:69, p < 0:001) and in visuospatial abilities (t = −4:94, p < 0:001), executive functions (t = −5:83, p < 0:001), memory (t = −6:11, p < 0:001), language (t = −4:26, p < 0:001), and temporal/spatial orientation (t = −2:81, p < 0:05) subscores, but not in attention subscore (t = −1:65, p > 0:05)
Summary
Social cognition refers to the psychological processes that allow individuals to make inference about other people in the context of social interaction [1]. It represents a crucial competence for dealing with our interpersonal relationships in everyday life, by enabling us to anticipate and interpret other’s behaviors. The assessment of ToM competences provides the opportunity to monitor the disease progression [5] This is helpful in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), a neurodegenerative condition which represents the most common cause of dementia according to the World Health Organization (WHO) [10]. The importance of the cognitive decline for ToM abilities is still an open matter of debate, and the association between ToM and cognitive functioning has yet to be deeply explored in AD continuum
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
