Direct Assessment of Functional Abilities (DAFA): A validation study with Hong Kong Chinese elders

The objective of this study was to validate the Chinese version of the Direct Assessment of Functional Abilities (DAFA) in Hong Kong Chinese elders. The original English version of DAFA was translated into Chinese with some modifications so that the Chinese version of the DAFA is more relevant to Hong Kong society. Then the Chinese version of the DAFA was completed by 189 people aged 60 years or older who attend the social centers for the elderly in Hong Kong. Firstly, reliability (internal consistency) of the Chinese version of DAFA was found to be acceptable. Concurrent validity was also established by strong correlations between the Chinese version of DAFA and two global measures of cognitive ability, namely, the Mini-Mental State Examination and Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire. Moreover, we have also found significant association between the Chinese version of DAFA and three tests of Primary Mental Abilities (number skill test, spatial relation test and inductive reasoning test). Results suggest that the Chinese version of DAFA is a reliable and valid assessment tool for everyday competence among elderly Chinese people in Hong Kong. Copyright © 2001 Taylor & Francis.