Relationship between Bender Designs and Basic Living Skills of Geriatric Psychiatric Patients

Abstract

35 geriatric psychiatric patients were given the Bender-Gestalt and examined on level of Basic Living Skills Assessment. Significant inverse relationships were found between scores on the Bender-Gestalt and five of the seven Basic Living Skills Assessment scales indicating a decrease in patients' functioning with increased visual-motor impairment scores. Skills involving gross motor behaviors were moderately related to poor Bender performance (-.47). These findings suggest the utility of the Basic Living Skills Assessment in identifying the nature and extent of those living skills deficits associated with assessed visual-motor impairment.

Validity of the Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire with elderly psychiatric patients.

“…Finally, the Basic Living Skills Assessment (BLSA) was administered to determine the functional status of the patient. The BLSA (Wolber & Lira, 1981) consists of interviewer ratings of 31 personal hygiene behaviors and activities of daily living that reflect the patient's ability to function independently in the environment.…”

Relationships between neuropsychological and functional assessment in elderly neuropsychiatric patients.

“…Weintraub, Baratz, and Marsel-Mesulam (1982) also attempted to relate a test battery to activities of daily living associated with initiation, memory, and visuopractic skills, finding some parallels. In general, other research in this area has been characterized by the use of measures involving verbal self-report, simple single cognitive tests, such as brief mental status examinations, and relatively global outcome criteria, such as scores derived from self-maintenance scales (Breen, Larson, Reigler, Vitaliano, Lawrence, 1984; Hayslip & Panek, 1983; Skurla, Rogers, & Sunderland, 1988; Vitaliano, Breen, Albers, Russo, & Prinz, 1984; Wolber & Lira, 1981).…”