ERIC Number: EJ840731
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2006-Sep
Pages: 8
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1741-1122
EISSN: N/A
Measurement of Environmental Constructs in Disability Assessment Instruments
Guscia, Roma; Ekberg, Stuart; Harries, Julia; Kirby, Neil
Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, v3 n3 p173-180 Sep 2006
The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) assumes a biopsychosocial basis for disability and provides a framework for understanding how environmental factors contribute to the experience of disability. To determine the utility of prevalent disability assessment instruments, the authors examined the extent to which a range of such instruments addressed the impact of environmental factors on the individual and whether the instruments designed for different disability groups focused differentially on the environment. Items from 20 widely used disability assessment instruments were linked to the five chapters of the ICF environment component using standardized classification rules. Nineteen of the 20 instruments reviewed measured the environment to varying degrees. It was determined that environmental factors from the Natural Environment and Attitudes chapters were not well accommodated by the majority of instruments. Instruments developed for people with intellectual disabilities had the greatest environmental coverage. Only one instrument provided a relatively comprehensive and economical account of environmental barriers. The authors conclude that ICF classification of environmental factors provides a valuable resource for evaluating the environmental content of existing disability-related instruments, and that it may also provide a useful framework for revising instruments in use and for developing future disability assessment instruments.
Descriptors: Mental Retardation, Classification, Evaluation Methods, Disability Identification, Environmental Influences, Research Methodology
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A