title: The relationship between constructional and meal preparation skills.
abstract: The purpose of this descriptive, correlational study was to explore the relationship between constructional abilities and meal preparation skills--a previously unstudied relationship. Fifty-four men with head injury, aged 18 to 52, in long-term rehabilitation programs, were given a battery of constructional, functional, and coordination tests: (1) the WAIS-R Block Design test; (2) a Parquetry Block test; (3) the Rabideau Kitchen Evaluation-Revised (RKE-R); and (4) two subtests of the Jebsen Hand Function Test. Results showed significant associations between constructional abilities and meal preparation skill. Pearson correlations were -0.51 (p = 0.0001) between WAIS-R Block Design test and RKE-R scores, and 0.50 (p = 0.0001) between Parquetry Block test and RKE-R scores. Partial correlations controlling for the effects of coordination also yielded significant correlations between WAIS-R Block Design test and RKE-R scores (r = -0.36, p = 0.05) and between Parquetry Block test and RKE-R scores (r = 0.39, p = 0.03). Constructional abilities, then, may contribute to meal preparation performance.
authors.affiliation: Tufts University-Boston School of Occupational Therapy, Medford, MA.
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Neistadt
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation; D003296:Cooking / Q000592:standards*; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009788:Occupational Therapy; D011597:Psychomotor Performance