Are the American normative standard scores applicable to the German version of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI-G)?

Abstract

Background The Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory (PEDI) is an assessment to evaluate children’s performance in activities of daily living. Aims The study investigated if the normative standard scores of the PEDI are applicable to the German version of the PEDI (PEDI-G) in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and whether there are differences in the applicability of the PEDI-G between the three countries. Materials and methods 75 children with normal development (35 girls, 40 boys) from Germany (n = 17), Austria (n = 16), and Switzerland (n = 42) aged between 0.9 month and 7.3 years (SD = 2.03) participated in the study. Descriptive statistics, independent samples t-tests, univariate analyses of variance (ANOVA) and post hoc Tukey tests were applied. Results No significant differences were identified. However, the German-speaking sample showed higher scores for the domain social function in both scales and in the Caregiver Assistance Scale self-care. Lower scores were identified in the Functional Skills Scale mobility. Conclusions and significance The results support that the normative standard scores of the PEDI are applicable to the PEDI-G and for Austria, Germany and Switzerland, as no significant differences between the countries were identified. However, the generalizability of the results is limited due to sample size and recruitment procedures.