The assessment of preschool children's participation: internal consistency and construct validity

Area of Science:

• Child Development
• Occupational Therapy
• Pediatric Rehabilitation

Background:

• Activity participation is crucial for preschool children's learning, skill development, and identity formation.
• Existing measures may not fully capture the nuances of participation in young children.
• Cerebral palsy can impact a child's ability to engage in various activities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and evaluate the Assessment of Preschool Children's Participation (APCP).
• To assess the reliability and validity of the APCP in a clinical population.
• To explore the APCP's utility in identifying participation patterns and restrictions.

Main Methods:

• The study involved 120 children with cerebral palsy aged 2 to 5 years and 11 months.
• The Assessment of Preschool Children's Participation (APCP) was administered to participants.
• Internal consistency and ability to differentiate between subgroups were analyzed.

Main Results:

• The APCP demonstrated moderate to very good internal consistency.
• The measure effectively distinguished between children based on age (above/below 4 years) and Gross Motor Classification System levels.
• Income level differences were also identified by the APCP.

Conclusions:

• The APCP is a reliable and valid measure for assessing preschool children's participation.
• The APCP can identify participation levels and potential restrictions in children with cerebral palsy.
• This tool has potential applications in clinical assessment and intervention planning for young children.