Open AccessNeuropsychological evaluation in rehabilitation planning and evaluation of functional skills
Author(s) -
Tristram Bennett
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
archives of clinical neuropsychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.909
H-Index - 98
eISSN - 1873-5843
pISSN - 0887-6177
DOI - 10.1016/s0887-6177(00)00082-2
Subject(s) - neuropsychology , rehabilitation , generalizability theory , neuropsychological assessment , psychology , test (biology) , ecological validity , neuropsychological test , cognition , activities of daily living , strengths and weaknesses , physical medicine and rehabilitation , clinical psychology , developmental psychology , medicine , psychiatry , social psychology , ecology , neuroscience , biology
This paper focuses on the benefits of neuropsychological assessment for evaluating a brain-injured person's functional abilities and rehabilitation needs. The importance of early assessment in addressing these goals is discussed. Strengths and weaknesses of neuropsychological assessment for predicting a person's ability to participate in normal activities of daily living are considered. Test data taken alone often lack ecological validity, but nevertheless, specific test findings can be used to predict functional skills. The ecological validity of neuropsychological testing can be extended by observing the patient's approach to tasks in the assessment environment and by observing the patient in his or her normal activities. Evaluation information obtained by allied rehabilitation professionals, including occupational and speech and language therapies, can be integrated with neuropsychological test data to both extend the generalizability of our findings and to validate hypotheses generated from our test data. The use of neuropsychological test data in planning a cognitive rehabilitation program is also considered.