THE COMMUNITY INTEGRATION QUESTIONNAIRE - A COMPARATIVE-EXAMINATION

The community integration questionnaire (CIQ) was designed to assess h ome integration, social integration and productive activity in persons with acquired brain injury. The instrument consists of 15 items and c an be completed by self report or with the assistance of a family memb er or caregiver familiar with the person's health status and social ac tivities. Previous research has demonstrated adequate test-retest reli ability and internal consistency. This study was designed to examine f urther, the psychometric characteristics of the CIQ and begin the proc ess of establishing the instrument's validity. The CIQ was administere d to 341 persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and 210 persons wit hout TBI or any other apparent disabilities. The results indicate that the total scores are normally distributed for both persons with and w ithout TBI. A statistically significant difference (P < 0.01) was foun d between subjects with TBI and those without TBI for all three subsca les of the CIQ and for total scores. Data analysis also revealed that the total CIQ scores statistically differentiated among subjects with TBI living in three different settings: (1) living independently; (2) living in a supported community situation and (3) living in an institu tion. Intercorrelations among the three subscales (home, social and pr oductivity) demonstrated that the CIQ provides unique information in t he assessment of community integration for persons with TBI. Areas of future research necessary to expand the research and program evaluatio n usefulness of the CIQ are identified.