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Test-retest Reliability, Interrater Reliability, and Convergent Validity of the Targeted Box and Block Test in an
Kimberly Kontson1, Bin Wang2, Nicole Leung1
1Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, United States Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, MD.
Objective:
To provide evidence for test-retest reliability, interrater reliability, and convergent validity of the targeted Box and Block Test (tBBT) in the upper limb prosthesis user population.
Design:
An observational study was designed to assess various psychometric properties of the novel outcome measure. Participants completed the tBBT across 2 distinct testing sessions to assess test-retest reliability, which was quantified using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) (3,k) and Pearson's correlation coefficient. Multiple raters scored the tBBT to assess interrater reliability, which was quantified using the ICC(2,k) and Pearson's correlation coefficient. Convergent validity was assessed by computing the Pearson's correlation coefficient between specific subtasks of the Capacity Assessment of Prosthesis Performance for the Upper Limb (CAPPFUL) and the tBBT.
Setting:
Clinic.
Participants:
A convenience sample of 20 transradial, unilateral upper limb prosthesis users.
Interventions:
Not applicable.
Main Outcome Measures:
tBBT, Box and Block Test (BBT), and CAPPFUL.
Results:
Interrater reliability for completion time and identification of unsuccessful transports were found to be excellent for the tBBT with ICC values of 0.97-0.99. Similarly, test-retest reliability was found to be good to excellent with ICC values >0.84. There were strong correlations between the scores obtained by different sessions and the scores given by different raters, with correlation coefficients exceeding 0.75. Moderate to strong correlations were found between the tBBT and BBT and subtasks of the CAPPFUL.
Conclusions:
The tBBT is a valid and reliable measure to assess the functional performance of individuals using an upper limb prosthetic device. This novel measure offers benefits of ease and speed of implementation; assessment of repetitive, ecologically representative movements; and quantification of performance using both speed and accuracy.
