Development and standardization of a "Do-Eat" Activity of daily living performance test for children

BACKGROUND. The Do-Eat was developed to evaluate daily task performance abilities among children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD). This study investigated the tool's reliability and validity. METHOD. Participants were 59 children ages 5 to 6.5 years; 30 children diagnosed with DCD according to the DSM-IV-TR; and a control group of 29 children, who were matched for age, gender, and sociodemographic background. RESULTS. Both the Do-Eat and the accompanying Parent Questionnaire yielded high internal consistency (as = .89-.93). Construct validity was demonstrated by significant between-group differences on the Do-Eat (t[57] = 14.09, p< .001) and the Parent Questionnaire (t[57] = 3.64, p< .001). Significant correlations between children's scores on the sensory-motor component of the Do-Eat and the Movement Assessment Battery for Children final score confirmed concurrent validity (r= -.86, p < .001 ). CONCLUSIONS. Results suggest that the Do-Eat is a reliable, valid tool for identifying children at risk for DCD.