History, design characteristics, and uses of the pictorial activity and task sorts.

Development of the Pictorial Activity and Task Sort (PATS) technology in the field of Occupational Rehabilitation is described. The history of several PATS measures is traced, and each measure is briefly described. The use of these measures to efficiently collect data in functional capacity evaluation and to provide guidance in occupational rehabilitation is briefly described. Key design characteristics are presented and several recommendations are provided for future development of PATS.