Importance: Occupational therapy using an Ayres Sensory Integration^® (ASI) approach is a common intervention that has not been extensively studied in children with idiopathic sensory processing and integration challenges (e.g., without a diagnosis of autism). Objective: To test the effectiveness of ASI using measures related to motor coordination and functional performance in children with a sensory-based motor disorder (SBMD). Design: Nonconcurrent, multiple baseline, single subject. Setting: Outpatient clinic that was part of a children’s hospital in an urban setting. Participants: Three boys (ages 5–8 yr) with an SBMD. Intervention: Each participant received ASI 3 times per week for 10 wk. Outcomes and Measures: Three motor probes were measured weekly. Pre- and posttest assessments included goal attainment scaling (GAS) and the Bruininks–Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency–Second Edition (BOT–2). Results: All 3 participants showed improvements in motor probes during the intervention period on the basis of a 2 SD band method of analysis. Statistically significant improvements were noted across GAS goals, and positive changes were found on the BOT–2, with large effect sizes. Conclusions and Relevance: Findings suggest improved motor performance and high goal achievement using ASI for children with idiopathic sensory processing and integration challenges. What This Article Adds: This study adds to a body of literature suggesting that ASI is effective in increasing functional performance in children with sensory processing and integration challenges. Future studies using multiple baseline designs are feasible in the clinic setting and can help build the evidence base for ASI.

Objective. In addition to the need for good measurement tools in occupational therapy, there is a need for the tools to be used knowledgeably. The purpose of this article is to investigate the usefulness of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (BOTMP) for both descriptive (diagnostic) and evaluative (change over time) purposes. Method. The typical profile of subtest scores for children with mild motor problems revealed that certain subtests of the BOTMP may be better indicators of motor problems for these children than others. An analysis also was performed to compare the use of raw (point) scores with standard (age-adjusted) scores in evaluating change. Results. Four subtests that provide a greater degree of discrimination between children with and without motor problems were identified. Raw (points) scores were found to provide a more valid measure of change over time than standard (age-related) scores. Conclusion. We recommend that, for clinical use, the BOTMP subtest standard scores be used for diagnostic purposes and that the raw scores be used for evaluative purposes.

Consideration of a child’s motor proficiency, intrinsic motivation, internal locus of control, and freedom to suspend many of the constraints of objective reality were proposed to provide a more comprehensive assessment of play than would an assessment of play performance alone. For empirical validation of this conceptual model of play, 29 subjects (15 nondisabled children and 14 children with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis) between the ages of 4 years 6 months and 6 years 6 months were given four assessments: (a) the Preschool Play Scale (Bledsoe & Shepherd, 1982, Knox, 1974); (b) the Bruininks–Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (Bruininks, 1978); (c) the Preschool and Primary Internal–External Locus of Control Scale (Nowicki & Duke, 1974); and (d) tests of associative fluency (Wallach & Koogan, 1965; Ward, 1968). Multiple regression procedures revealed that, when considered together, scores on the Bruininks–Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency, tests of associative fluency, and the Preschool and Primary Internal–External Locus of Control Scale predicted scores on the preschool Play Scale, thereby supporting the usefulness of the proposed theoretical model. Further, there was no significant difference in the mean scores of the two groups on the Preschool Play Scale. Although this finding may be an artifact of the small sample size, it also may support the authors’ belief that children with motor impairments are able to compensate for their limitations by developing areas of relative strength that allow them to play normally. When this belief was further tested with Pearson product-moment correlations and Fisher’s Z transformations, it was found that correlations between the test scores of the nondisabled children were not significantly different from those of the children with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Clearly, further research is needed.