Phonemic verbal fluency in non-WEIRD populations: Demographic differences in performance in the Controlled Oral Word Association Test-FAS

Abstract

This article supports the importance of understanding the role demographic variables play in cognitive performance and how they represent a source of bias in cognitive testing, particularly in the COWAT-FAS. It highlights how age, level of education, and the correspondence, or lack thereof, between first language and language of assessment, impacts phonemic fluency tasks. This knowledge may help to manage biases when conducting verbal fluency assessments with multilingual individuals and in non-WEIRD contexts.