Contextual constraints play an important role in determining motor behavior of any individual. Three major sources of constraints to action include the environment, organism, and task. This study was conducted to examine the effects of task constraints on reaching kinematics in adults without disabilities. Task constraints were varied by changing the functional level of task goal and functional specificity of target object. A drinking activity under four experimental conditions formed by the crossing of functional goal and object affordances was performed by 24 healthy young adults. Under the higher level of a functional goal, participants were asked to take a drink from a can of cola. The lower level of a functional goal involved bringing a can of cola to the mouth. The level of object affordances depended on whether a commercial label on the can was present (i.e., the enriched condition) or occluded (i.e., the impoverished condition). Results indicated that a higher functional goal with enriched affordances elicited significantly more efficient movements (i.e., shorter movement time and higher average velocity) than the condition of a higher functional goal with impoverished affordances that in turn produced faster movements than the condition of a lower functional goal with enriched affordances. Reaching for a lower functional goal with impoverished affordances elicited the least efficient movements among the four conditions. The findings lent some support for the modifiability of reaching kinematics through varying the task constraints and afforded implications for occupational therapy. Further research may explore therapeutic possibilities for training patients with neurological impairments to accomplish functional tasks more efficiently by affording enriched contexts. Directions for such research were discussed.

This study examines the validity and reliability of a new tool, the Family Provider Interaction Analysis (FPIA), designed to evaluate the quality of family/provider relationship regarding its degree of family-centeredness. The FPIA analyzes family/professional interactions by classifying behaviors into one of 11 verbal behavior categories. The validity and reliability of this tool were explored by having 4 trained subjects use the FPIA to rate 3 videotaped family/provider interaction sessions, which were predetermined to represent varying degrees of family-centered service delivery. Face validity was partially supported because chi-square analysis revealed significant differences in the frequency of FPIA categories observed between the family-centered session as compared to the nonfamily-centered session. Examination of the reliability of the tool revealed coefficients ranging from Rho = .17 to Rho = 1.0 for intrarater reliability and from Rho = .01 to Rho = .77 for interrater reliability. The results demonstrate potential for the use of this tool as an objective measure of the degree to which family/provider interactions depict family-centered services. Pending further scrutiny, the FPIA has implications as programs strive for services to be of higher quality, more comprehensive, and more efficient to meet the needs of the families they support.

The present study examined if orthographic, finger function, and visual-motor processes as well as gender made a unique and significant contribution to the prediction of the handwriting status of fifth grade students classified as good or poor handwriters. Visual-motor integration and finger functioning made a unique and significant contribution to the prediction of handwriting status, whereas gender and orthographic processes did not. Furthermore, knowledge of children's gender, finger functioning, and visual-motor status resulted in the correct classification of 77% of the participating students as good or poor handwriters.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether gesture performance in developmental dyspraxia and adult onset apraxia are similar. The performance of children and adults with dyspraxia and adults with apraxia on similar tasks were compared. A convenience sample of six groups of participants were as follows: children with learning disabilities and dyspraxia, young adults with learning disabilities and dyspraxia, older adults with left hemisphere brain damage and apraxia, and three age-matched groups of control participants. There were 10 subjects in each group except the young adults with learning disabilities. Performance on two types of motor tasks was measured: item (transitive, intransitive) and mode (verbal command and imitation). A mixed-model analysis of variance showed significant main effects for Diagnosis, Item, Mode, and the interactions of Diagnosis X Item and Mode X Item. This study suggests that participants with developmental dyspraxia and adult onset apraxia exhibit similar performance deficits in gestural motor tasks. The children and young adults with dyspraxia also scored similarly implying that dyspraxic behaviors continue into adulthood. Application of the findings to intervention suggest that task performance may improve if therapists demonstrate motor tasks and eliminate or minimize tool use.

The purpose of this study was to determine if persons with dementia of the Alzheimer type (DAT) differed from nondisabled older controls in the actual, experienced difficulty of specific process skills that affect performance of activities of daily living (ADL). A two-group comparison was performed and all participants were evaluated in either clinical or home environments to which they had been familiarized. Participants (341 persons with DAT and 287 controls) were selected from the standardization sample of the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS) computer-scoring software. The demographic characteristics of the two groups were comparable. The AMPS was used to evaluate the effort, efficiency, safety, and independence of 20 ADL process skills that are compiled to enact performance of familiar ADL tasks. The raw data for each sample was subjected to many-faceted Rasch analysis to determine item difficulty calibrations of the ADL process skill items for each group. Actual item difficulty calibrations of 19 ADL process skills differed meaningfully between the two groups. The results indicated that it is possible to identify specific ADL process skills that are actually easier or more difficult for each group. In addition, the results supported earlier research that has demonstrated that the underlying cognitive and physical impairments demonstrated by persons with DAT do manifest as ADL disability, negatively impacting their ability to perform ADL tasks.

This study used an open-ended self-report survey to define ‘research’ and ‘researcher’ from the clinician's perspective. Seventy-five occupational therapists working in 6 acute care metropolitan hospitals in Sydney, Australia participated in this study (75% response rate). There were four key findings. First, a profile of therapist research revealed variations in levels of involvement with most (75%) having none. This was not related to postgraduate qualifications or study, years of experience, age, clinical specialty or seniority. Second, the nature of activities identified to be research by clinicians varied: project names, specific research tasks, input, output-related activities such as thinking and professional development activities. Third, research was defined in terms of its attributes, process, and outcomes. Fourth, researchers were described as being engaged in specific research tasks, other general tasks that progressed the research, and they were identified as producers of research outcomes. Differences were identified in responses between those therapists who were involved in research and those who were not.

A longitudinal study of 55 adults with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) investigated the areas of function for which they lacked self-awareness of their level of competency. Data were collected at 3 and 12 months post-injury using the Patient Competency Rating Scale. Self-awareness was measured by comparing patient self-ratings with the ratings of an informant. The results were consistent with previous studies, indicating that self-awareness was most impaired for activities with a large cognitive and socioemotional component, and least impaired for basic activities of daily living, memory activities, and overt emotional responses. For most areas of function that were overestimated at 3 months post-injury, self-awareness subsequently improved during the first year after injury.

The objective of the study was to verify the stability of two consecutive force measurements, using a multidirectional dynamometer for the thumb, in order to determine whether there is a visuomotor learning or fatigue effect. The maximal static forces (MSF) exerted at the proximal phalanx of the thumb were obtained in 23 normal female participants aged 21 to 28 years. Two measurements of the MSFs in eight directions covering 360°, at increments of 45°, were examined for both the dominant and nondominant hand using visual feedback. A three-way analysis of variance with repeated measures (factors: direction-trial-handedness) showed a single significant interaction observed between the factors of direction and trial. Because no significant main effect for factor handedness was observed, the data regarding this factor were pooled. Further analysis using t-tests indicated that the MSFs were not significantly different between trials and that the MSFs exerted in directions with abduction were lower than those exerted in adduction. It is concluded that stable measurements of the thumb's strength are obtained within two consecutive trials and that neither visuomotor learning nor fatigue affect the measurements.

This review of clinician workload measurement system (WMS) data at two Canadian hospitals compared clinician time use when students were and were not placed with them. Using the national WMS data, time was sub-divided into direct patient care and indirect patient care. A longitudinal design allowed clinicians to serve as their own control. The findings indicated that 87% of clinicians (n=23) had no significant difference in their direct and indirect patient care time with and without students (n=71). With a larger sample, it is expected that students would actually increase time spent by a clinician on direct patient care and either make no difference or negligibly increase time spent on indirect patient care. This study demonstrated that contrary to popular opinion, having students can actually increase clinician productivity with respect to patient care.

Patient education is an important component of cardiac rehabilitation. It is also a portion of most other therapeutic interventions provided by occupational therapists. This study compared two methods for delivering patient education for inpatients recovering from coronary artery bypass grafting surgery. The traditional intervention was therapist-directed, whereas the collaborative intervention used shared control by the therapist and patients for structuring patient education sessions. When viewed as a whole, the two methods did not result in significantly different levels of knowledge of rehabilitation principles. However, a pretesting effect resulted in a significant difference in knowledge on the basis of whether or not subjects took a pretest, and this condition also interacted with group assignment. These relationships are explored with a recommendation that occupational therapists study whether pretesting effects can be used in a deliberate fashion to improve learning during patient education.