Neuropsychological Test Norms for the Assessment of HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Impairment Among South African Adults.

Reliable and valid neurocognitive (NC) test batteries that assess multiple domains of cognitive functioning are vital tools in the early detection of HIV-associated NC impairment. The HIV Neurobehavioral Research Center's International Neurobehavioral Battery (HNRC Battery) is one such diagnostic tool and has shown cultural validity in several international neuroHIV studies. However, no published norms are currently available for the full HNRC Battery in South Africa. To accurately interpret NC test results, appropriate reference norms are required. In light of this challenge, data were collected from 500 healthy, HIV-uninfected participants to develop demographically corrected South African norms. When demographically corrected United States of America (U.S.) norms were applied to the performance scores of our neurologically intact, HIV-negative sample, an impairment rate of 62.2% was observed compared to a 15.0% impairment rate when the newly generated South African norms were applied. These results reiterate the findings of other low- and middle-income countries, highlighting the need for localized, country-specific norms when interpreting NC performance.

(Not) part of the team: Racial empathy bias in a South African minimal group study.

Minimal Group Paradigm (MGP) research suggests that recategorization with an arbitrarily defined group may be sufficient to override empathy biases among salient social categories like race. However, most studies utilizing MGPs do not consider sufficiently the socio-historical contexts of social groups. Here we investigated whether the recategorization of White participants into arbitrarily defined mixed-race teams using a non-competitive MGP would ameliorate racial empathy biases towards ingroup team members in the South African context. Sixty participants rated their empathic and counter-empathic (Schadenfreude, Glückschmerz) responses to ingroup and outgroup team members in physically painful, emotionally distressing, and positive situations. As anticipated, results indicated significant ingroup team biases in empathic and counter-empathic responses. However, mixed-race minimal teams were unable to override ingroup racial empathy biases, which persisted across events. Interestingly, a manipulation highlighting purported political ideological differences between White and Black African team members did not exacerbate racial empathy bias, suggesting that such perceptions were already salient. Across conditions, an internal motivation to respond without prejudice was most strongly associated with empathy for Black African target individuals, regardless of their team status. Together, these results suggest that racial identity continues to provide a salient motivational guide in addition to more arbitrary group memberships, even at an explicit level, for empathic responding in contexts characterized by historical power asymmetry. These data further problematize the continued official use of race-based categories in such contexts.

Screening for HIV-associated neurocognitive impairment: Development and validation of an abbreviated neuropsychological test battery for use in South African clinical settings.

BACKGROUND: The HIV Neurobehavioral Research Center International Neurobehavioral Battery is a culturally valid battery sensitive to the neurocognitive (NC) effects of HIV-infection. However, its lengthy administration time makes the battery impractical in resource-limited settings, like South Africa, which are often faced with an overwhelming disease burden, a lack of neurological and neuropsychological (NP) expertise, and staff shortages. The present study therefore sought to develop an abbreviated version of the HNRC Battery and validate this battery in a sample of people with HIV (PWH) in South Africa. OBJECTIVE: The present study therefore sought to develop an abbreviated version of the HNRC battery and validate this battery in a sample of people with HIV (PWH) in South Africa. METHOD: Six measures were selected based on the NC test performances of 103 HIV-positive and 135 HIV-negative South African adults. For the validation, a subgroup of 103 PWH completed the full version of the battery, while the other subgroup of 52 PWH completed only the abbreviated version. Deficit scores of each participant were calculated. These scores were used as the gold standard against which the abbreviated battery was compared. RESULTS: There was a reduction of 81% in administration time when compared to the full version of the battery. The abbreviated battery demonstrated good sensitivity (75.0%) and excellent specificity (94.9%) when compared with the full version. The abbreviated battery showed good diagnostic accuracy in identifying NC impairment in an HIV-positive South African sample with a significant reduction in administration time, making it a more practical option in busy South African clinic settings. CONCLUSION: The results of this study may facilitate the growth of neuroAIDS research and aid initial identification of HIV-related NC impairment in resource-constrained settings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Living with a parent with dementia: A family resilience study.

The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with family resilience in families caring for a parent with dementia. A mixed-methods approach was followed to collect data from a convenience sample drawn from the Cape Metropolitan area in the Western Cape, South Africa. The study sample comprised 47 families in which adult children were caring for a parent with dementia. The quantitative data analysis was conducted using analyses of variance (ANOVA), Pearson's product-moment correlation coefficients and a best-subsets multiple regression analysis. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic content analysis. It was found that acceptance, optimism, positive communication patterns, family connectedness, spirituality, social support, economic resources and the effective management of symptoms helped these families adapt to the burdens of dementia care. In addition to expanding the literature regarding family resilience, the findings could be used to develop interventions tailored to the needs of these families caring for a parent with dementia to create a family environment that enhances adjustment and adaptation.