Psychometric properties of the Balance Computerized Adaptive Test in residents in long-term care facilities

Abstract

PurposeTo validate the psychometric properties and efficiency of the Balance Computerized Adaptive Testing (Balance CAT) when applied to residents in long-term care (LTC) facilities. Design and methodsA cohort study was conducted in central Taiwan. The Balance CAT, the Berg Balance Scale (BBS), and the Barthel Index (BI) were administered to each participant with the ability to follow simple instructions by a trained rater in two days. The Pearson's correlation coefficient (r) was used to determine the concurrent validity of the Balance CAT. ANOVA and post hoc analysis were employed to investigate the discriminative ability of the Balance CAT. The paired t test was used to validate the efficiency. ResultsA total of 120 participants completed assessments of the Balance CAT, the BBS, and the Barthel Index (BI). The Pearson's r between the scores of the Balance CAT and the BBS was 0.90. Groups with different levels of dependence had significantly different mean scores of the Balance CAT. The mean IRT reliability of the Balance CAT scores was 0.93. The mean administration time of the Balance CAT was about 28% of that of the BBS, and the mean number of items used in the Balance CAT was 3.4. ConclusionsThe Balance CAT had excellent concurrent and discriminative validity, reliability, and efficiency in residents of LTC facilities. These results indicate that the Balance CAT is a sound and practical measure for assessing the balance function of residents of LTC facilities.