Psychometric evaluation of the Finnish version of the Assessment of Work Performance (AWP-FI).

Abstract

Background: Assessment of work ability is complex yet crucial in occupational health and vocational rehabilitation. Evaluating psychometric properties is essential to ensure the accuracy of assessment tools in this field.

Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Finnish version of the Assessment of Work Performance (AWP-FI) with a focus on construct validity.

Material and methods: The AWP assesses a client's observable working skills during work performance in three domains: motor skills, process skills, and communication and interaction skills. Ninety-four AWP-FI assessments were performed by 17 occupational therapists in Finland. A Rasch analysis was conducted to evaluate the psychometric properties.

Results: The AWP-FI presented an overall fit to the Rasch model with acceptable item-fit statistics and items performing stably between gender, work tasks, and observation types. A suboptimal targeting was evident and issues concerning local dependency among items and indications of multidimensionality were indicated.

Conclusion: This study provides an initial validation of the AWP-FI, demonstrating generally acceptable psychometric properties, suggesting that the AWP-FI is valid and reliable for assessing work performance. Further testing is recommended to address the identified issues with local dependence and suboptimal targeting.