ERIC Number: EJ743205
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2006
Pages: 8
Abstractor: Author
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0047-6765
EISSN: N/A
Comparison of Reports by Relatives and Staff on Living Conditions of Adults with Intellectual Disabilities
Umb-Carlsson, Oie; Sonnander, Karin
Mental Retardation: A Journal of Practices, Policy and Perspectives, v44 n2 p120-127 2006
Proxies typically serve as information providers in studies of persons with intellectual disabilities. However, little is known about the concordance between different proxy categories and how proxy characteristics influence the information provided. We compared 89 pairs of relative and staff reports on the living conditions of persons with intellectual disabilities, using percentage agreement and Cohen's kappa statistics. Results demonstrate differences between relative and staff reports for most of the domains investigated, with moderate agreement for objective items and fair agreement for subjective items. Relative and staff proxies contributed different information related to diverse viewpoints and varying types of information. Thus, we suggest that information provided by proxies should not be treated as being interchangeable but, rather, as complementary.
Descriptors: Comparative Analysis, Family Relationship, Professional Personnel, Adults, Mental Retardation, Information Sources, Statistics, Caregivers, Learning Disabilities, Research Utilization, Research Reports
American Association on Mental Retardation. P.O. Box 7065, Lawrence, KS 66044-7065. Tel: 785-843-1235; Fax: 785-843-1274; e-mail: AJMR@allenpress.com; Web site: http://www.aamr.org/Periodicals/index.shtml.
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