Impact of Time on Performance on the Weekly Calendar Planning Activity (WCPA)

PURPOSE: Occupational therapists often use performance-based assessments to identify functional cognitive deficits that may impact an individual's ability to independently complete basic and instrumental activities of daily living (Giles, Edwards, Morrison, Baum, & Wolf, 2017). In order to manage cognitively challenging tasks, many individuals employ strategies to increase the probability of successful occupational performance (Toglia, Rodger, & Polatajko, 2012). The purpose of this study was to explore the effect of time on total strategy use and total errors made when completing a test of functional cognition. DESIGN: This study used a cross-sectional design to assess a convenience sample of 197 healthy, community-dwelling older adults. Inclusion criteria were: age 55 years or older, living independently in the community, and able to read and communicate in English. Convenience sampling was used to recruit participants via study flyers posted throughout the community in addition to in-person recruitment at community events, senior centers, and word-of-mouth referrals from study participants. METHOD: Participants were administered the Weekly Calendar Planning Activity (WCPA), a performance-based measure of functional cognition. Published percentile scores were used to establish three groups based on total time to complete the WCPA: participants who completed the assessment in 11 minutes or less (70th percentile and above), between 11 minutes and 20 minutes (between 30th percentile and 70th percentile), and 20 minutes or more (30th percentile and below). Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was conducted to determine whether the groups differed in terms of mean number of strategies used and mean number of errors made on the assessment. RESULTS: The participant sample was predominantly female (76.1%) and white (80.7%), with a mean age of 70.36 (SD = 8.24). There was a significant difference in mean number of strategies used, F(2, 191) = 12.96, p < .001, between groups controlling for age, education, and WCPA accuracy. Post-hoc pairwise comparisons indicated a significant increase in total strategy use between participants who took more than 20 minutes to complete the WCPA and those who took between 11 and 20 minutes (p < .001), and between participants who took more than 20 minutes and those who took less than less than 10 minutes (p < .001). However, there was no significant difference in total errors made, F(2,192) = .96, p = .39, between time groups, after ad