Short versions of the Timed Manual Performance Test. Development, reliability, and validity

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Clinical Assessment

Background:

• The Timed Manual Performance (TMP) test is widely used to evaluate functional status in clinical and research settings.
• The original 27-item TMP test is lengthy and requires cumbersome equipment, potentially limiting its practical application.
• There is a need for more efficient and accessible measures of manual performance in community-dwelling elderly populations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To reduce the number of items in the Timed Manual Performance (TMP) test.
• To develop and validate shorter versions of the TMP test.
• To compare the reliability and validity of shorter TMP versions against the original 27-item test.

Main Methods:

• Principal components analysis was used to identify key components of the original TMP test.
• Two shorter versions were developed: TMP (Doors) with five board tasks and TMP (Table) with six table tasks.
• The study involved 1,286 community-dwelling elderly subjects recruited via primary care providers.

Main Results:

• Two shorter, reliable measures were identified: TMP (Doors) (alpha = 0.79) and TMP (Table) (alpha = 0.82).
• These shorter versions require less equipment and demonstrate higher completion rates compared to the original TMP test.
• The shorter TMP versions appear to be superior measures of manual performance relative to the 27-item TMP.

Conclusions:

• Shorter versions of the Timed Manual Performance test, TMP (Doors) and TMP (Table), are reliable and valid alternatives.
• These revised tests offer practical advantages, including reduced equipment needs and improved usability for assessing manual performance in older adults.
• The findings support the use of these optimized TMP tests in research and clinical practice for evaluating functional status.