Performance on the Rivermead Behavioural Memory Test (RBMT) of 43 residents of Part III homes was compared with performance on Raven's Coloured Progressive Matrices and the National Adult Reading Test (NART). Health, medication, self‐care and social activity were also measured. Results show that although Raven's score was the best predictor of memory test performance, it had a high refusal rate. Age was not a significant predictor of overall memory test score but results were complicated by age of entry into Part III, with older people performing better on some items. Medication, in particular drugs acting on the central nervous system, enhanced performance on some item