Kelleher M, Copeland J, Gurland B, Sharpe L
Int J Aging Hum Dev. 1976;7(4):295-302. doi: 10.2190/ywwf-vn54-19at-2a7r.
Instruments, whether used in psychometrics or in other fields, must have a practical application if they are to repay the care spent in their use and development. The Geriatric Mental State schedule was developed in response to the need to answer the question whether functional psychiatric disorders were being misdiagnosed as organic brain syndrome and, if so, to what extent this influenced treatment and outcome. In the hospitals studied it was found that American psychiatrists were more likely to diagnose organic brain syndrome than British psychiatrists. Although elderly patients with affective disorder were less likely to be given American patients was as good, if not better, than the outcome in the British patients.
仪器，无论用于心理测量学还是其他领域，若要回报在其使用和开发中所投入的精力，就必须有实际用途。老年精神状态检查表的开发是为了回应这样一个问题，即功能性精神障碍是否被误诊为器质性脑综合征，如果是，这种误诊对治疗和结果有多大影响。在所研究的医院中发现，美国精神科医生比英国精神科医生更有可能诊断出器质性脑综合征。尽管患有情感障碍的老年患者被诊断为器质性脑综合征的可能性较小，但美国患者的治疗结果与英国患者的一样好，甚至更好。
