The ‘Checklist of Leisure, Interests and Participation’: A contemporary leisure checklist

Abstract

Introduction

The Modified Interest Checklist (MIC) is a tool used by therapists to understand past and present occupational engagement, however, is now outdated and lacks contemporary occupations. The aim of this study was to develop an updated valid and reliable checklist tool inclusive of contemporary leisure activities for clinical practice.

Methods

The study consisted of four phases, including feedback in relation to the MIC, two phases of development of an updated tool, and occupational therapists' opinions on the tool.

Consumer and Community Involvement

There was no consumer or community involvement in the development of this manuscript.

Results

More than 50% of participants in phases I and II expressed a need for a contemporary leisure inventory with specific detail to the inclusion of modern activities such as video games. An updated tool was developed, the ‘Checklist of Leisure, Interests and Participation’ (CLIP).

Conclusion

The CLIP presents as a valid and reliable option for leisure profile assessment. Findings suggest that this tool could be used for assessments within mental and physical health services.

PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY

The Modified Interest Checklist (MIC) is a commonly used occupational therapy tool used to assess people's leisure and interests. The tool was created in 1982 and is outdated for modern activities that people like to do in their spare time. This tool is typically used to understand what activities people like, dislike, and would like to do. This study aimed to develop and update the tool that includes contemporary activities such as social media and video games. The study included four online surveys in total. The first survey explored participants views of whether the MIC included modern activities that people like to do. A second survey was developed with a new tool called the Checklist of Leisure, Interests and Participation (CLIP) and asked people for feedback. More than 50% of the respondents from survey one and two indicated a need for an updated tool. A third survey gained further feedback on the CLIP. The final survey explored occupational therapists' perspective on whether the tool could be used with patients. The tool was viewed as suitable for patient use in Australian by occupational therapist and would be beneficial to understand people's leisure interests. This tool could be used by occupational therapists who work with adults in a range of settings such as mental and physical health settings. The surveys were collected online through social media, which could limit the variety of interests from the people who responded to the survey. This study provides information on how people like to spend their time. Further research is required to understand how occupational therapists can use this tool in more practice settings.