BioPsychoSocial Assessment Tools for the Elderly - Assessment Summary Sheet Test: Activities-Specific Balance Confidence (ABC) Scale Year: 1993 Domain: Biological Assessment Tool Category: Mobility Variations/Translations: N/A Setting: Clinical Method of Delivery: The ABC Scale can be self-administered or administered via personal or telephone interview Description: The Activities-specific Balance Confidence (ABC) Scale is a 16-item questionnaire/survey. Each item is rated from 0% (no confidence) to 100% (complete confidence). Elderly respondents are asked to rate their confidence that they will lose their balance or become unsteady in the course of daily activities. Scoring/Interpretation: ABC is an 11-point scale and ratings should consist of whole numbers (0-100) for each item. Participants should indicate their level of confidence in doing an activity without losing balance or becoming unsteady by choosing one of the percentage points on the scale from 0%-100%. Total the ratings (possible range = 0 to 1600) and divide by 16 to get each subject’s ABC score. Scores lower than 50 indicate a low level of functioning, scores above 50 but below 80 indicate a medium level, and those over 80 indicate a high level of functioning. Time to Administer: Approximately 2-5 minutes. Availability: See website (below) Software: N/A Website: http://altonepark.cityofswan.com/docs/documents/350/1292005647.pdf Quantitative/Qualitative: Quantitative Validity (Quantitative): In a population of 60 community seniors (aged 65-95) who self-classified as either high or low in mobility confidence according to their perceived need for a walking aid and personal assistance to the ambulance. Participants who had reported fallen in the past year had lower mean ABC scores compared to those who had not experienced a fall. Physical Self-Efficacy Scale scores were correlated r=0.49 with ABC. Total ABC and Falls Efficacy Scale scores correlated at r=0.84. ABC discriminates better than Falls Efficacy Scale scores of high versus low mobility participants. Reliability (Quantitative): The total ABC score was found to be highly stable over a two-week period with r=0.92, (p<0.001). Cronbach’s alpha was 0.96, indicating high internal consistency of the ABC scale. Consequently, there is high test-retest reliability over 2 studies and high internal consistency. References: McDowell, I. & Newell, C. (1996). Measuring Health: A Guide to Rating Scales and Questionnaires. (2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. Powell, L., Myers, A. (1995). The activities-specific balance (ABC) scale. Journal of Gerontology, 50, M28-M35. Comments: N/A