The Canadian Occupational Performance Measure (COPM) is a clinician-administered interview style questionnaire which measures the client’s self-perception of occupational performance. The client is asked to identify a number of activities of difficulty. Then, the client rates their perceived performance, importance, and satisfaction regarding each activity on a 1-10 scale. It is recommended to administer the COPM multiple times in order to determine changes in scores over time.

ICF Domain

Participation ▶ General tasks and demands

Administration

  • Issues are rated 1-10 in importance.
  • Goals are rated 1-10 in performance and satisfaction.
  • Higher scores reflect greater importance, performance, or satisfaction.
  • Mean scores for performance & satisfaction can be obtained.

Number of Items

Up to 5 items/goals selected from identified issues

Equipment

None

Languages

English, French, Hebrew, Mandarin, Persian, Spanish and 30+ others.

Training Required

Training is required and can be accessed here.

Availability

The COPM worksheet can be purchased here.

Measurement Property Summary

Number of studies reporting psychometric properties: 4

Interpretability

  • MCID:
    • Performance: 2.0
    • Importance: 2.0
    • Satisfaction: 2.0
    • *Values referred to as Minimally Worthwhile Treatment Effect

(Boswell-Ruys et al. 2010; n=30, 25 males, 5 females; AIS-A/B only; motor level T1-12; mean (SD) 14.5 (12.3) years post-SCI)

  • SEM: not established for SCI population
  • MDC: not established for SCI population

Reliability – High

Number of studies reporting reliability data: 1

  • High internal consistency:
    • COPM performance: α = 0.93
    • COPM satisfaction: α = 0.89
  • High test-retest reliability:
    • COPM performance: ICC = 0.99
    • COPM satisfaction: ICC = 0.98

(Berardi et al. 2019; n=39, 71% males; mean (SD) age: 53 (15) years; time since injury: 15±14; level of injury: C4-L3)

Validity – Low to Moderate

Number of studies reporting validity data: 3

  • Moderate correlation with the COPM subscales and the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) Motor subscale: (r = 0.388-0.514)

(Donnelly et al. 2004; n=41; missing demographic info for 3; 29 males; 18 paraplegia, 20 tetraplegia; 27 complete, 11 incomplete; traumatic and non-traumatic; mean (SD, range) 52 (73.1, 11-364) days post-SCI)

  • Low correlation with the COPM and the Klein-Bell ADL Scale: ρ = 0.07
  • Low correlation with the COPM and the SCIM III: r = 0.22-0.30, ρ = 0.17-0.30

(Berardi et al. 2019; n=39, 71% males; mean (SD) age: 53 (15) years; time since injury: 15±14; level of injury: C4-L3)

Responsiveness

Not established in SCI population

Floor/Ceiling Effect

Not established in SCI population

Reviewers

Dr. Carlos L. Cano-Herrera, Tyra Chu

Date Last Updated

December 31, 2024

Berardi A, Galeoto G, Guarino D, Marquez MA, Santis RD, Valente D, Caporale G, Tofani M. Construct validity, test-retest reliability, and the ability to detect change of the canadian occupational performance measure in a spinal cord injury population. Spinal Cord Series and Cases 2019;52:1-8.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41394-019-0196-6

Boswell-ruys CL, Harvey LA, Barker JJ, Ben M, Middleton JW, Lord SR. Training unsupported sitting in people with chronic spinal cord injuries: a randomized controlled trial. Spinal Cord. 2010;48(2):138-43.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19597520

Donnelly C, Eng JJ, Hall J, et al. Client-centred assessment and the identification of meaningful treatment goals for individuals with a spinal cord injury. Spinal Cord. 2004;42(5):302-7.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14993893

Samuelsson KA, Tropp H, Gerdle B. Shoulder pain and its consequences in paraplegic spinal cord-injured, wheelchair users. Spinal Cord. 2004;42(1):41-6.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14713943