Occupational Therapy and the Occupation of Listening: Comparing Students with Experienced Practicioners
Graduation Date
2010
Document Type
Master's Thesis
Document Form
Degree Name
Masters of Science in Occupational Therapy
Department
Occupational Therapy
Department or Program Chair
Ruth Ramsey, EdD, OTR/L
Thesis Advisor
Janis Davis, PhD, OTR/L
Second Advisor
Ruth Ramsey, EdD, OTR/L
Abstract
Studies investigating how occupational therapists conceptualize the occupation of listening in practice are lacking. Listening is especially critical in establishing a relationship between the occupational therapist and the client. This relationship can affect motivation to continue therapy, the mood during therapy, and effectiveness of treatment. This investigation focused on conceptualizations of listening of occupational therapy experts and occupational therapy students. A quantitative and non-experimental research design was used in this study. Participants were selected using a convenience sample of students from three northern California occupational therapy education programs, and experts from the list of Fellows of the American Occupational Therapy Association. The data was collected through a self-report questionnaire that elicited beliefs about listening. Two groups were compared along dual axes of four factors of listening conceptualizations, and student versus expert conceptualizations. T-tests were used to determine differences between the two groups. Results suggest that occupational therapy experts and students hold similar beliefs about listening, and believe that listening is most like learning and integrating information.