MoCA Word Recall 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which brain structure is most critical for the encoding of new words tested in the MoCA delayed recall?
- Cerebellum
- Hippocampus (Correct answer)
- Basal ganglia
- Occipital lobe
Correct answer: Hippocampus
The hippocampus is essential for converting short-term memories into long-term episodic memories.
Question 2: On the MoCA, the five words are read aloud to the patient how many times during the registration phase?
- Once
- Twice (Correct answer)
- Three times
- Until recalled correctly
Correct answer: Twice
The word list is read twice to allow adequate encoding before the delay period.
Question 3: In MoCA scoring, what does administering a multiple-choice recognition trial after failed cued recall help determine?
- The patient's reading ability
- Whether failure reflects encoding versus retrieval (Correct answer)
- The severity of frontal lobe damage
- Whether the test should be repeated
Correct answer: Whether failure reflects encoding versus retrieval
Recognition success after recall failure indicates the memory was encoded but cannot be freely retrieved.
Question 4: A patient with moderate Alzheimer's disease is most likely to show which pattern on MoCA word recall?
- Perfect recall with slow processing
- Impaired recall that does not improve with semantic cues (Correct answer)
- Impaired free recall but perfect cued recall
- Normal recall with intrusion errors
Correct answer: Impaired recall that does not improve with semantic cues
True encoding failure in Alzheimer's means cues and recognition also fail to improve performance significantly.
Question 5: Which of the following best describes 'intrusion errors' in the context of MoCA word recall?
- Forgetting all five words
- Recalling words not on the original list (Correct answer)
- Repeating the same word multiple times
- Refusing to attempt recall
Correct answer: Recalling words not on the original list
Intrusion errors occur when patients report words that were never presented, indicating poor source monitoring.
Question 6: For MoCA standardized administration, how long after the initial learning phase should delayed recall be tested?
- 1 minute
- 5 minutes (Correct answer)
- 10 minutes
- 30 minutes
Correct answer: 5 minutes
The MoCA protocol specifies a minimum 5-minute delay filled with other subtests before word recall is tested.
Question 7: When administering category cues on the MoCA word recall, what information is the examiner allowed to provide?
- The first letter of the word
- The semantic category the word belongs to (Correct answer)
- The number of syllables
- A rhyming word
Correct answer: The semantic category the word belongs to
Category cues on the MoCA are semantic (e.g., 'It was a type of animal'), helping distinguish retrieval from encoding deficits.
MoCA Word Recall 3
Which brain structure is most critical for the encoding of new words tested in the MoCA delayed recall?