extended · article · 2017

Development of the Hand Assessment for Infants: evidence of internal scale validity

Lena Krumlinde‐Sundholm; Linda Ek; Elisa Sicola; Lena Sjöstrand; Andrea Guzzetta; Giuseppina Sgandurra; Giovanni Cioni; Ann‐Christin Eliasson; John M. Linacre

AIM: The aim of this study was to develop a descriptive and evaluative assessment of upper limb function for infants aged 3 to 12 months and to investigate its internal scale validity for use with infants at risk of unilateral cerebral palsy. METHOD: The concepts of the test items and scoring criteria were developed. Internal scale validity and aspects of reliability were investigated on the basis of 156 assessments of infants at 3 to 12 months corrected age (mean 7.2mo, SD 2.5) with signs of asymmetric hand use. Rasch measurement model analysis and non-parametric statistics were used. RESULTS: The new test, the Hand Assessment for Infants (HAI), consists of 12 unimanual and five bimanual items, each scored on a 3-point rating scale. It demonstrated a unidimensional construct and good fit to the Rasch model requirements. The excellent person reliability enabled person separation to six s...