A-198: The NAB Word Generation Task: A Measure of Semantic or Phonemic Fluency?

Abstract

Objective: The present study examined the extent to which the Word Generation subtest of the Neuropsychological Assessment Battery (NAB) is associated with semantic (categorical) versus phonemic (letter-based) verbal fluency processes. Although the NAB Word Generation Task requires generation of words from constrained orthographic stimuli, its construct validity with respect to established fluency domains remains unclear. Method/Data Selection: Archival data were obtained from an outpatient neuropsychology clinic in Louisville, Kentucky. Nineteen adults (ages 19–79) who completed all relevant measures were included following record review. Pearson product–moment correlations were conducted to evaluate associations between NAB Word Generation performance, semantic fluency (Animal Naming), and phonemic fluency (Controlled Oral Word Association Test [COWAT]). Results/Data Synthesis: Word Generation performance was significantly correlated with phonemic fluency as measured by the COWAT (r = .49, p < .05) but was not significantly associated with semantic fluency (Animal Naming; p = .063). Conclusions: Preliminary evidence supports the convergent validity of the NAB Word Generation Task with phonemic fluency measures, with weaker associations for semantic fluency. This pattern suggests task demands preferentially engage phonological lexical retrieval processes versus semantically driven search strategies. Results have implications for the interpretation of NAB language subtests and highlight the consideration of underlying cognitive mechanisms when evaluating verbal fluency performance in clinical populations.