Communicative Effectiveness Index (CETI)

A 16-item caregiver-rated scale of everyday communication effectiveness.

Completed by a family member or close communication partner, not the person with aphasia.
16 communication situations rated on a visual analogue scale (0 to 100 per item).
Covers four areas: basic needs, health threat, life skills, and social needs.

What it measures

The CETI asks a familiar communication partner to rate how well the person with aphasia communicates in 16 real-life situations, for example giving yes/no answers, following a TV programme, or talking with friends. Each situation is rated on a visual analogue scale from ‘not at all able’ to ‘as able as before the stroke’.

What the result tells you

The mean of the 16 ratings (0 to 100) reflects functional communication from the partner’s perspective. It complements clinician-administered batteries and captures everyday effectiveness that a structured test may miss. It is used to track change over treatment.

Used for

Aphasia

Evidence, psychometrics and provenance

Psychometrics

Test-retest reliabilityICC ≈ 0.93

Reliability scale from 0 to 1. Higher indicates greater agreement.

Construct validity: Moderate correlation with WAB AQ

References

1.Lomas J, Pickard L, Bester S, et al. The communicative effectiveness index: development and psychometric evaluation of a functional communication measure for adult aphasia. J Speech Hear Disord. 1989;54(1):113-124.

This assessment uses a validated instrument and is reference information, not a diagnosis.