Translation, adaptation and psychometric properties study of the participation and environment measure for children and youth (PEM-CY)

Abstract

This study goals where to translate and culturally adapt the PEM-CY: Participation and Environment Measure for Children and Youth and also to present its psychometric properties in the portuguese population. This instrument examines the perception of caregivers of children with and without disabilities on participation frequency, involvement and desire of change in typical activities in home, school and community settings; it also examines wich context factors affect participation. PEM-CY was completed by the parents/caregivers of 390 children, aged 5-17 years, of which 152 were reported as having disability. Internal consistency ranged from.67 to.86, except for school context frequency. Test-retest reliability values were all above.68. In what concerns criterion validity, significant differences in parent’s responses of children with and without disabilities were found in all 3 settings. Results obtained indicate the portuguese translation of PEM-CY as a valid measure for achieving understanding on how children with and without disabilities participate in different settings, according to parents perspectives.