Abstract
Effective assessment of upper limb coordination is pivotal for guiding post-stroke rehabilitation. The Bimanual Assessment Measure (BAM) is a recently developed, psychometrically promising instrument designed to evaluate bimanual hand function and inter-limb coordination in stroke survivors. Although the BAM has demonstrated strong reliability since its inception, its convergent and discriminant validity have not yet been formally investigated. Establishing these validity properties is essential to confirm its construct validity and support its integration into clinical and research practice. This study aims to determine the convergent and discriminant validity of the BAM in individuals with chronic stroke by comparison with established upper limb assessment instruments. This prospective observational study include stroke survivors (aged 18–65 years, stroke onset ≥6 months prior) from a tertiary care neurorehabilitation centre, selected according to pre-specified inclusion and exclusion criteria. Three standardized instruments will be administered in a single session: the BAM, the Adult Assisting Hand Assessment–Stroke (Ad-AHA Stroke), and the Jebsen-Taylor Hand Function Test (JTHFT). Convergent validity will be assessed by correlating BAM scores with Ad-AHA Stroke scores using Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient. Discriminant validity will be examined by comparing BAM (bimanual) scores with JTHFT (unimanual) scores using the Spearman correlation/Mann-Whitney U test, to confirm that the two instruments measure distinct constructs. The findings of this investigation will provide robust evidence regarding the convergent and discriminant validity of the BAM in the stroke population, thereby strengthening its psychometric foundation and supporting its clinical applicability as a comprehensive bimanual outcome measure in stroke rehabilitation.