Which cognitive domain assesses recall of recent events or information?

• A. Recent memory
• B. New learning ability
• C. Amnestic disorder
• D. Fund of knowledge

Answer: (A)

Recalling information from the near past is the focus here. Recent memory assesses how well a person can remember events or details from the last day or so. In a mental status exam, you test this by asking about recent happenings or information and seeing what they can report after a short delay. This domain specifically measures recall of recent events, distinguishing it from how well someone can learn new information right now.

New learning ability is about forming new memories during the test, not about what was already remembered. An amnestic disorder refers to a broader memory impairment syndrome, not a discrete memory domain you test in isolation. Fund of knowledge reflects general knowledge accumulated over a long time, which is more about remote memory than recent memory.