OBJECTIVE. To investigate whether the performance of a multisegment motor task is influenced by reading a segment-specific action word. METHOD. Twenty-four participants performed tasks that involved reaching for a bottle, grasping it, lifting and placing it on a shelf, and returning their hand to the starting position. At the initiation of each task, participants read either aloud or silently five randomly provided, task-related words (reach, grasp, lift, place, and return). RESULTS. Reading task-related words significantly affected the reach and lift/place segments in the direction of the hypothesis (p < 0.05) but not the return segments. Grasp times were shorter and grasp velocities were higher when participants read aloud or silently the words grasp and place for the grasp segment (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION. The results suggest that in young adults, motor performance may be influenced by precuing or priming the brain with performance-related words. A meaning of a motor performance can be manipulated by contextually relevant language, which can facilitate performance.

OBJECTIVE. To compare performance on the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (AMPS), a measure of functional task performance and physiological responses (salivary cortisol levels) during AMPS administration, between typically developing children and children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). METHOD. In this quasi-experimental study, independent t tests, and mixed, repeated measures analysis of variance were conducted to compare a group of typically developing children (n = 21) with a group of children with ADHD (n = 12) on two dependent measures: (a) the AMPS and (b) salivary cortisol. Salivary cortisol, a stress hormone, was taken at three time points, baseline, mid-way through AMPS administration, and 20 min following AMPS administration. RESULTS. Significant differences were found on the activities of daily living (ADL) process ability measure of the AMPS (p = .001) and the ADL motor ability measure (p = .04), with the ADHD group performing more poorly than typical children. There was no significant group (ADHD vs. control) by time period interaction effect on cortisol levels. Overall, the cortisol levels of the ADHD group were higher than the levels of those in the control group (p = .02). Cortisol levels tended to drop significantly over time (p = .01) for both groups, however the patterns differed somewhat between groups. Cortisol levels of the typical children dropped at the final time period (20 min post-AMPS administration) whereas the levels of the children in the ADHD remained higher during this time period. This interaction effect approached, but did not reach, statistical significance (p = .15). CONCLUSION. The results of this investigation suggest that the AMPS is sensitive to detecting functional performance concerns, and both motor and process skill deficits, associated with ADHD, and therefore may be a useful assessment tool with this population. Data also suggests that cortisol expression to a well-known ADL task may be lower if the task is not overly challenging for the individual, and provides support for further study of the role of cortisol with disorders of attention.

The role of the occupational therapist working in the school system is to facilitate a student’s task performance or ability to do purposeful and meaningful activities so that the student benefits from the educational experience. To fulfill this role, occupational therapists need assessments that address functional performance issues in the classroom and provide information for effective programming and consultation. The School Version of the Assessment of Motor and Process Skills (School AMPS) is an observational evaluation of functional skills in the classroom. Common classroom activities are observed to assess a child’s school motor and school process skills. This study examined the validity of the School AMPS by comparing it to the Peabody Developmental Motor Scale–Fine Motor (PDMS-FM), a common assessment used in local area school districts in Edmonton, Alberta. Results show a higher correlation of the PDMS-FM with the motor scale of the School AMPS than with the process scale of the School AMPS, which was expected. The School AMPS appears to be a promising instrument for measuring the constructs of school motor and school process skills within a naturalistic setting.

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this study was to determine the psychometric properties of the Assessment of Computer Task Performance, specifically, the test–retest reliability, internal consistency, construct validity, and ability to discriminate between known groups. METHOD. This assessment comprises 14 standardized and timed tasks. It was administered to 24 persons with upper-extremity impairments and 30 with no impairments by a trained occupational therapist. To assess the test–retest reliability, participants in the impaired group were retested within 2 to 7 days. Intraclass correlation coefficients were calculated to determine test–retest reliability. Internal consistency was assessed with Cronbach’s alpha, and factor analysis was conducted to examine construct validity. The Mann Whitney U Test was used to assess the test’s ability to discriminate between the groups. RESULTS. Results indicated that the tool has excellent reliability and internal consistency, can discriminate between groups, and has appropriate construct validity. CONCLUSION. The Assessment of Computer Task Performance provides occupational therapists with an accurate test to measure computer performance and can assist them in providing computer access services.

Objective. Whether the environment is stressed in function–dysfunction decisions appears to depend on where in the hierarchy of components of complex tasks and of role skills the evaluating therapist is focused. This study examined the intervention planning decisions of occupational therapists who used the Model of Student Role Adaptation, which emphasizes the complex tasks involved in the student role. The purpose of the study was to determine whether these therapists were responding to environmental demands in planning their interventions. Method. Special education teachers selected tasks that they believed were the most essential for student functioning within their classroom environments. These selections were compared with the goals and objectives developed by occupational therapists who serve children in these settings. Results. Chi square analysis indicated a significant relationship between tasks designated by the teacher participants as environmental demands and those included in occupational therapy intervention planning. Conclusion. The results suggest that the occupational therapist participants were responding to the environmental demands of the classroom when constructing their intervention plans.