Psychometric properties of the Motor test in NUBU 4-16: Investigations of interscorer reliability, concurrent validity, and utility

Abstract

Aim: To investigate interscorer reliability of the Motor test in the new Norwegian test battery NUBU 4-16 (Neuro-motor assessment of children and youth 4-16), as well as concurrent validity and utility against the Movement Assessment Battery for Children (MABC-2). Design: Two studies: (1) Quantitative analyses of test scores from two independent scorings. (2) Quantitative analyses of test scores and questionnaire responses regarding utility and time consumption. Materials and method: (1) 36 children assessed with the Motor test. Experienced physiotherapists scored the tests independently based on video recordings. (2) 52 children assessed with the Motor test and MABC-2 by experienced physiotherapists who also responded to open-ended questions. Results: A high interscorer reliability: The intraclass correlation for the total score was 0.99, and the overall agreement for categorical scores was 86 per cent. The Motor test and MABC-2 displayed equivalent distributions of age-related percentiles. The correlation between age-related percentiles for total scores from the two tests was 0.68. Testers agreed to a great extent that the five areas of the Motor test provide a nuanced picture of childrens motor skills; however, the test is time-consuming. MABC-2 takes less time to administer. Conclusion: Experienced testers can score the Motor test reliably. The Motor test and MABC-2 may be assumed to measure the same broad construct of motor skills. The Motor test may provide a more nuanced picture of childrens motor skills, but requires longer time to administer