The Occupational Therapist carries out a visual screen which includes ocular history, visual fields, neglect/inattention. You can see examples of visual screening tools here.
The occupational therapist also carries out a perceptual screen which is complemented by a functional assessment. Assessment of perceptual skills can be carried out by observing a person’s interaction with objects and their environment or through standardised testing. See Additional Information Box for examples of standardised assessments.
The following table describes the behavioural presentation which may be seen with specific perceptual problems.
| Behavioural presentation which may be seen with specific perceptual problems | ||
|---|---|---|
| Form constancy | Figure-ground discrimination | Colour discrimination |
| Difficulty recognising objects when presented in altered planes. May not recognise a plate when stacked sideways in the cupboard, or a folded shirt. | Difficulty distinguishing items from the background. May struggle to identify a fork in a cutlery drawer or an item of clothing in a cluttered drawer. | Difficulty identifying objects by colour. May have difficulty identifying a specific brand of food which is associated with a certain colour, or sorting out copper and silver coins. |
| Depth/distance discrimination | Body scheme | Spatial relations |
| Difficulty judging depth and distance. May over or under pour liquid into a cup or need to feel the depth of a stair tread to climb them. | Difficult relating the position of body parts to each other. May confuse right and left sides of body whilst dressing or appear to be clumsy. | Difficulty judging distance and relating the position of objects to each other and to oneself. May have difficulty fitting a lid on a teapot or reaching for a cup which is positioned behind another object |
Watch these video clips to see some common visual problems:
Results of screen: Pamela is demonstrating problems with visual discrimination, specifically with form constancy and figure ground discrimination. The Occupational Therapist recognises that Pamela still has problems with usual forms of the object and questions if she has visual agnosia.
The videos describe:
- Colour Discrimination
- Spatial Relations
- Form Constancy
- Figure Ground Discrimination
- Depth Distance Discrimination
Page last reviewed: 29 Jul 2021
