The Use of the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS) in Predicting Need of Assistance for Adults with Mental Retardation

Abstract

Because the ability to perform activities of daily living (ADL) is associated with global aspects of community functioning, it is critical to evaluate whether the information gained from specific ADL assessments contributes to a reliable prediction of the overall amount of assistance needed for a person to function in the community. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the predictive use of an ADL assessment, the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS), to determine which people with mental retardation need support or assistance to function in the community. A sample of 380 data records from the AMPS international database of people with various levels of mental retardation was included in the study. Many-faceted Rasch analyses and logistic regression models were used for data analysis. The results indicated that only the AMPS ADL process ability measures contributed significantly and substantially to the prediction of the level of assistance required to function in the community for individuals with mild to moderate mental retardation when used in conjunction with age, gender, and level of mental retardation. The results have clinical implications for occupational therapists working with these people because ADL process ability can be improved by occupational therapy interventions.