OBJECTIVELY MEASURING PHYSICAL ABILITY IN ELDERLY PERSONS - THE PHYSICAL CAPACITY EVALUATION

The Physical Capacity Evaluation, a performance measure of functional capabilities comprised of 13 tasks-simulating those used in activities of daily living, was tested on 289 community-dwelling elderly people and compared against a widely used Self-report measure of function, th e Health Assessment Questionnaire. Factor analysis identified one domi nant component in each instrument. Internal consistency reliability (C ronbach's alpha) was .90 for both instruments. Global disability (Heal th Assessment Questionnaire) and function (Physical Capacity Evaluatio n) scores were correlated -.74. One-week retest reliabilities on 58 su bjects were .94 for the Physical Capacity Evaluation and .95 for the H ealth Assessment Questionnaire. The Physical Capacity Evaluation is a valid and reliable measure of physical performance for use with elderl y people.