Factor analysis of the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students in a cross-cultural occupational therapy undergraduate student sample.

BACKGROUND/AIM: The Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST) has been used previously to assess the learning approaches among students in higher education, but reports of its use with occupational therapy students are rare. This study investigated the factor structure of the ASSIST in a cross-cultural sample of undergraduate occupational therapy students, and examined whether the factor structure from specific participant groups from different cross-cultural contexts was consistent. METHODS: Occupational therapy students (n = 712) from education programmes in Australia, Norway, Hong Kong and Singapore completed the ASSIST. To assess the factor structure of the instrument, a Principal Components Analysis (PCA) using a confirmatory approach, was completed. Cronbach's coefficient α and inter-item correlations were used to assess the internal consistency of the ASSIST and its subscales. RESULTS: For the whole sample, the PCA confirmed the three primary factors as previously established. Five subscales loaded on the first factor (strategic approach). Four subscales loaded on the second factor (surface approach), whereas the remaining four subscales loaded on the third factor (deep approach). Repeating the analysis for each of the country-specific samples produced slightly diverging factor structures for the samples from Australia and Hong Kong. CONCLUSION: Considering all the data, the ASSIST subscales that emerged from the PCA used with a confirmatory approach in this study revealed a good degree of concordance with the established original factor, scale and subscale structure. The slightly deviating results obtained for the Hong Kong student group indicate that the established factor structure may not be the best fit across all settings, cultural contexts and sample groups.

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

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.

Approaches to studying predict academic performance in undergraduate occupational therapy students: a cross-cultural study.

BACKGROUND: Learning outcomes may be a result of several factors including the learning environment, students' predispositions, study efforts, cultural factors and approaches towards studying. This study examined the influence of demographic variables, education-related factors, and approaches to studying on occupational therapy students' Grade Point Average (GPA). METHODS: Undergraduate occupational therapy students (n = 712) from four countries completed the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST). Demographic background, education-related factors, and ASSIST scores were used in a hierarchical linear regression analysis to predict the students' GPA. RESULTS: Being older, female and more time engaged in self-study activities were associated with higher GPA among the students. In addition, five ASSIST subscales predicted higher GPA: higher scores on 'seeking meaning', 'achieving', and 'lack of purpose', and lower scores on 'time management' and 'fear of failure'. The full model accounted for 9.6% of the variance related to the occupational therapy students' GPA. CONCLUSIONS: To improve academic performance among occupational therapy students, it appears important to increase their personal search for meaning and motivation for achievement, and to reduce their fear of failure. The results should be interpreted with caution due to small effect sizes and a modest amount of variance explained by the regression model, and further research on predictors of academic performance is required.

Cultural influences on occupational therapy practice in Singapore: a pilot study.

Over the past decades, numerous occupational therapy frameworks have been published and adopted in the West but there is little discussion of their applicability to Singapore. The purpose of this study was to examine the relevance and applicability of occupational therapy frameworks in Singapore. Data were gathered from nine highly experienced occupational therapists. Audio-taped semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. Qualitative methods were used in identifying five themes--independence, applicability of client-centred practice, concepts of occupation/activity, client's areas of concern, and application of occupational therapy models to practice. The themes were discussed in the context of three broad areas: (1) the potential discrepancy between occupational therapy's philosophical base and clients' values, (2) mismatch between the occupational therapists' prescription of activity and the meaning of activities to clients, and (3) the potential conflict between the occupational therapy approach and the corporate culture in Singapore. One of the important results from the study was that in Singapore culture, clients generally did not believe that achieving independence was important and they expected to be taken care of by their families. Further research with a larger sample is necessary to explore how culture and societal values impact on occupational therapy practice in Singapore.