Factors Influencing Occupational Therapy Students' Attitudes Toward Persons With Disabilities: A Conjoint Analysis

2004 ◽  
Vol 58 (4) ◽  
pp. 426-434 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. W. H. Tsang ◽  
F. Chan ◽  
C. C. H. Chan
Keyword(s):  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Conjoint Analysis ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
Occupational Therapy Students ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
Students Attitudes

scholarly journals Attitudes toward rehabilitating inmates among occupational therapy students in the United States

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
pp. 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Catherine Tucker ◽  
Hon Keung Yuen
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Internal Consistency Reliability ◽  
The United States ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
The Public ◽  
Occupational Therapy Students ◽  
Orientation Scale ◽  
Students Attitudes

Purpose: This study was to examine occupational therapy (OT) students’ attitudes toward rehabilitating inmates and validate an instrument used to measure their attitudes. Methods: OT students (n=128) from one university in Alabama, United States, completed an online survey exploring their attitudes toward rehabilitating inmates, which was assessed using the Rehabilitation Orientation Scale (ROS), a 7-point scale. Dimensional structure, internal consistency reliability, construct validity, and relations to other variables of the ROS was evaluated using factor analyses, Cronbach’s alpha, known-groups method, and univariable correlations, respectively. Results: Unidimensionality of the ROS was confirmed with an alpha coefficient of 0.90. The mean ROS score of the respondents was 5.1; a score toward 7 indicated a more supportive attitude. About 60% of the respondents reported supportive attitudes (i.e., an ROS score ≥5). Respondents’ ROS scores were significantly higher than those of the public and criminal justice professionals. Female students reported a more supportive attitude than males. Multiple regression analysis indicated that respondents’ consideration of working in prison settings after graduation and their perception that OT has a role in prison settings were significantly associated with support for rehabilitating inmates, after controlling for gender and an acquaintance with someone who has been incarcerated. Conclusion: Results indicated that the ROS demonstrated adequate psychometric properties as it applied to this population. The majority of respondents reported supportive attitudes toward rehabilitating inmates. Consideration of working in prison settings after graduation and the perception that OT has a role in prison settings were 2 independent factors associated with respondents’ attitudes toward rehabilitating inmates.

Australian Occupational Therapy Students: Attitudes towards and Knowledge about Psychiatry

1997 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julian Gilbert ◽  
Jenny Strong
Keyword(s):  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Demographic Data ◽  
Background Information ◽  
Personality Factor ◽  
Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire ◽  
Occupational Therapy Students ◽  
Sixteen Personality Factor ◽  
Positive Attitudes ◽  
Personality Factor Questionnaire ◽  
Students Attitudes

This study examined attitudes towards psychiatry, prior knowledge about psychiatry and trait anxiety in preclinical Australian occupational therapy students. At the time of the study, students were anticipating their first clinical placement in psychiatry. Instruments used in the study were the Attitudes Towards Psychiatry – 30 Scale (ATP-30), the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16 PF), and a demographic data sheet looking at background information on students which asked the question: ‘When you started the occupational therapy course, did you expect to have anything to do with psychiatry?’ The results showed that, while students reported positive attitudes towards psychiatry, a high percentage of students (In particular, the trait anxious student) had not been aware that psychiatry was part of the undergraduate education in occupational therapy. These findings suggest that the trait anxious student may not be able to assimilate knowledge in a new experience, and that the profile of the occupational therapist working in mental health needs to be enhanced.

scholarly journals Engaging persons with disabilities as community teachers for experiential learning in occupational therapy education

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sok Mui Lim ◽  
Bhing Leet Tan ◽  
Hua Beng Lim ◽  
Zi An Galvyn Goh
Keyword(s):  
Experiential Learning ◽  
Occupational Therapy ◽  
Leisure Activities ◽  
Learning Activity ◽  
Average Score ◽  
Occupational Therapy Education ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
Occupational Therapy Students ◽  
Signed Rank ◽  
Holistic Understanding

Background Cultivating empathy towards persons with disabilities has been highlighted as an essential graduate attribute in the occupational therapy profession. Purpose With the aim to developing a more holistic understanding of disability, this project seeks to translate an experiential learning activity developed in Canada to the local Singaporean context. Small groups of two to three students were paired with a person with physical disability, known as a community teacher, for a series of visits to observe and participate in their self-care, productivity and leisure activities. Method A sequential explanatory mixed methods design was adopted with the administration of an adapted version of the Multidimensional Attitudes Scale Towards Persons with Disabilities on 51 first year occupational therapy students. Seventeen students participated in three focus group discussions at the end of the learning activity. Findings: Comparison of pre- and post-scores using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests of all three subscales of the Multidimensional Attitudes Scale Towards Persons with Disabilities yielded significant improvements. The average score for Affect improved from 42.94 to 32.08, z = −5.43, P <  .001; for Cognition improved from 26.12 to 21.41, z = −4.20, P <  .001; for Behaviour improved from 23.78 to 20.65, z= −4.44, P <  .001. Effect sizes ranged from medium to large. Thematic analysis of focus groups led to the identification of four themes that explained these improvements. Implications: Experiential learning can be effective in cultivating empathy and improving attitudes of occupational therapy students towards persons with disabilities. There is potential to expand this pedagogical approach to other health sciences disciplines.

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