Content validity and usefulness of Picture My Participation for measuring participation in children with and without intellectual disability in South Africa and Sweden

Abstract

BACKGROUND : Participation comprises attendance and involvement in everyday situations. Picture My Participation (PmP) is an instrument intended to measure participation in children with disabilities, particularly in low and middle income countries. AIM : To investigate content validity and usefulness of PmP for measuring participation in children with intellectual disability (ID) in South Africa and Sweden. METHODS : A picture supported interview with 149 children, 6–18 years, with and without ID. Twenty everyday activities were provided. The three most important activities were selected by the child. Attendance was rated on all activities. Involvement was rated on the most important. RESULTS : All activities were selected as important by at least one child with ID in both countries. There were similarities in perceived importance between the children with and without ID from South Africa. The children from South Africa with ID were the only subgroup that used all scale points for rating attendance and involvement. CONCLUSION : The 20 selected activities of PmP were especially relevant for children with ID in South Africa. The usefulness of the scales was higher for the children with ID in both countries. PmP is promising for assessing participation across different settings but psychometrical properties and clinical utility need further exploration.