SELF-AWARENESS OF DEFICITS IN ADULTS WITH TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY - HOW BEST TO MEASURE

Some method of assessing self-awareness of deficits in patients with t raumatic brain injury (TBI) is required to increase our understanding of the phenomenon, and to then evaluate strategies for clinical interv ention with patients who lack such self-awareness. Options for the ass essment of self-awareness of deficits following TBI are reviewed. The most commonly used method is comparison of patients' self-ratings on q uestionnaires of functional abilities with ratings by relatives or sta ff on the same questionnaires. An additional method of assessment, an interviewer-rated semi-structured interview is proposed (the Self-Awar eness of Deficits Interview), and some preliminary inter-rater reliabi lity data are presented. However, quantitative methods of evaluating s elf-awareness have shortcomings, and qualitative research may be more appropriate in some circumstances. An approach which makes use of mult iple measures to evaluate self-awareness of deficits is recommended.