Construct Validity of the Occupational Performance History Interview

Abstract

The Occupational Performance History Interview (OPHI) (Kielhofner, Henry, & Walens, 1989) was developed to gather reliable, valid data about individuals' past and present occupational performances. The construct validity of the OPHI was assessed in a study evaluating the long-term impact of spinal cord injury on the lives of 143 people. Subjects' scores on the OPHI were correlated with their scores on the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (Radloff, 1977) and the Multidimensional Pain Inventory (Turk & Rudy, 1987). There was a significant negative correlation between the OPHI present and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Significant correlations in the expected directions also were obtained between the OPHI present scores and six of the Multidimensional Pain Inventory subscales. In addition, the OPHI past and present mean scores were significantly different, indicating that the instrument is sensitive to changes in occupational performance following traumatic spinal cord injury. These results support the construct validity of the OPHI, and therefore can increase therapists' confidence in using the instrument for diagnostic or therapeutic decision-making.

Keywords

instrument development diagnosis therapy

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Anastasi

(1968). Psychological testing (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan.

Bridle

M. J.

Lynch

K. B.

, & Quesenberry

(1989). Evaluation of the Virginia Regional Spinal Cord Injury System follow-up care. Rehabilitation R&D Progress Reports. Washington, DC: Veterans Administration.

Kerns

R. D.

Turk

D. C.

, & Rudy

T. E.

(1985). The West Haven-Yale Multidimensional Pain Inventory (WHYMPI). Pain, 23, 345–356.

Kielhofner

(Ed.). (1985). A model of human occupation: Theory and application. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins.

Kielhofner

, & Burk

J. P.

(1980). A model of human occupation, part 1: Conceptual framework and content. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 34, 572–581.

Kielhofner

Harlan

Bauer

, & Maurer

(1986). The reliability of a historical interview with physically disabled respondents. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 40, 551–556.

Kielhofner

, & Henry

(1988). Development and investigation of an occupational performance history interview. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 42, 489–498.

Kielhofner

Henry

, & Walens

(1989). A user's guide to the occupational performance history interview. Rockville, MD: The American Occupational Therapy Association.

Radloff

L. S.

(1977). The CES-D Scale: A self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement, 1, 385–401.

10.

Sax

(1974). Principles of educational measurement and evaluation. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

11.

Turk

D. C.

, & Rudy

T. E.

(1987). Toward a comprehensive assessment of chronic pain patients: A multiaxial approach. Behavior Research and Therapy, 25, 237–249.