Methodological issues in the measurement of persons with disabilities

The collection of information about persons with disabilities presents a particularly complex measurement issue, due, in part, to the diverse and complex phenomena represented by the word disability. Although a large and growing number of scales exist which attempt to measure impairments and disabilities, little is known about the measurement error properties of most of these question items and composite scales. This paper re-examines the empirical literature related to the measurement of persons with disabilities, identifying the various methodological factors that affect the measurement process.