OCS vs FACES intervention

OCS-Plus provides health professionals with a brief cognitive assessment focussed on memory and executive attention. OCS-Plus was developed by the Translational Neuropsychology Research Group at the University of Oxford. The tool has been standardised, normed and validated (Demeyere et al 2021). The tool is currently undergoing further research for validity of use in specific clinical groups. The tool is not for self-assessment. Instead, a health professional assessor administers the screen to respondents to investigate domain-general cognitive impairments, with a specific focus on memory and executive attention. The tool contains multiple easy to administer tests and instructions are provided for each test. Normative data is provided for three age groups : under 60, between 60 and 70, and older than 70 and respondent performance is automatically compared to established normative cut offs. In order to activate the app for use, registration is required. There is no cost for the standard app version where data is not uploaded. Where data upload is required, an administration fee, as well as a collaboration agreement and datasharing agreement is required to be put in place.

FACES Intervention aims to improve two main skills that are theorised to be the crux of how emotions are recognised in others. According to the literature, the two main ways in which we determine emotion in others is by: 1) attending to and understanding important emotional cues and 2) having experienced that emotion ourselves; therefore referring to our own similar emotional experiences. Consequently the goals of this treatment program are: i. To teach participants to attend to facial features/regions that are most important for determining emotion (eye region: brows and lids; and mouth). ii. To use personal emotional experience to relate to and identify emotions in others. There are two main components to this program. One component uses a series of questions to familiarise participants with facial expressions. The other piece uses elaborate discussion to help the participant relate to the emotions being discussed, through awareness of their own personal emotional experiences. Both components of this program are interwoven and require a lot of interaction between the participant and the therapist.