Introduction / Rationale: Several studies have investigated personal abilities in individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD), like social and motor skills; however, little is known about their levels of occupational performance in daily life activities, and what specific personal abilities contribute to better occupational performance. Objectives: To investigate occupational performance needs and associated cognitive and motor factors in individuals with IDD.
Methods / Approach: This study utilized a descriptive and cross-sectional design. The purposive sample included one hundred and eighty individuals with IDD, mean age 37.5 years, with IDD diagnosis from three residential care centers in Jordan. Research tools included Canadian Occupational Performance Measure COPM, Functional Independence Measure FIM, and Montreal Cognitive Assessment MoCA. Study procedures involved obtaining informed consent, structured and semi-structured interviews, and assessments. Data analyses utilized descriptive statistics, analysis of frequencies, correlations, and regression analyses.
Results / Practice Implications: Individuals with IDD showed low occupational performance in all daily life areas, including self-care, productivity, and leisure (COPM Performance M= 1.433, SD±.57021, COPM Satisfaction M= 1.31, SD±.54, FIM M= 3.673, SD± 1.7918). Significant predictors of high occupational performance on COPM included high FIM Motor and Cognitive scores, younger age, and having high school educational level (R2=0.603, p=0.012).
Conclusion / Contribution to the occupational therapy profession: Occupational therapy for individuals with IDD should be individualized to improve occupational performance in self-care, productivity and leisure activities. These activities should be tailored to target motor and cognitive abilities in this population because these abilities are related to betted occupational performance.