Scope & Limits

This page defines what FCE does and does not do. These boundaries are intentional. They are designed to protect people, prevent over-interpretation, and preserve measurement integrity.

“FCE measures functional performance. It does not explain causes, assign labels, or make decisions.”
Not diagnostic Not legal judgment Not substance detection Not automated decisions Refusal protects
Read Concept Open instrument

What FCE does

  • Measures functional execution using short standardized tasks (speed, control, stability)
  • Compares performance to a personal baseline (baseline-relative, not population-normative)
  • Supports repeatable self-checks and monitoring with transparent history
  • Labels low-quality sessions and can refuse to score when comparison would be misleading
  • Stores data locally by default, with optional user-initiated export

What FCE does not do (explicit non-goals)

FCE is intentionally limited. It must not be used to imply more than it measures.

  • Not diagnostic — does not diagnose medical, psychiatric, or neurological conditions
  • Not clinical triage — does not replace clinical evaluation or emergency assessment
  • Not legal judgment — does not determine legal responsibility, guilt, innocence, or compliance
  • Not substance detection — does not detect drugs/alcohol or infer biochemical states
  • Not cause attribution — does not explain why performance changed
  • Not automated decision-making — does not issue binding outcomes (e.g., “fit/unfit”)
  • Not single-session determinism — one session should not be treated as a decisive verdict
  • Not interpretive: FCE does not guide reflection, suggest meaning, or infer personal circumstances.

Physiology boundary (explicit)

FCE does not measure neurological function, hormonal status, substance presence, or physiological systems. It measures observable task execution only.

Results are not medical conclusions and must not be treated as diagnostic or enforcement outputs.

Interpretation rules (required)

  • History-first: interpret patterns over time, not one-off results
  • Device consistency: baseline and checks should be on the same device/input method
  • Context matters: sleep loss, stress, illness, distraction, medication effects can affect function
  • No cause inference: similar deviations can arise from many different causes
  • Human oversight: results are informational, not authoritative decisions

For practical workflow guidance, see How to Use.

Refusal and integrity (harm-reduction by design)

FCE includes refusal logic. If data quality is insufficient for comparison, the system may mark a session as not usable rather than producing a misleading score.

  • Protects against false certainty from incomplete or distorted input
  • Prevents “forcing” a number when the measurement is not reliable
  • Encourages retesting under cleaner conditions

Refusal is protection — not failure.

Institutional use (constraints)

If FCE is explored in institutional contexts, the following constraints should be treated as baseline requirements:

  • Voluntary participation with clear consent and the ability to decline without penalty
  • Transparency about what is measured, how it is interpreted, and what it cannot conclude
  • Contestability — results must be reviewable and never treated as automatic enforcement
  • Separation of layers — any data-sharing or reporting layer must be explicit and separate
  • Independent validation — thresholds and claims should be tested and documented

Short disclaimer (copy-ready)

FCE is a baseline-relative functional performance instrument. It measures short-task execution and tracks changes relative to a personal baseline. FCE does not diagnose conditions, detect substances, infer causes, or produce automated or binding decisions. Results must be interpreted by a human and should be considered together with context and history.