Acting as Change Agents: Insight Into Québec Occupational Therapists' Current Practice: Actions menées à titre d'agents de changement : aperçu des pratiques actuelles parmi les ergothérapeutes du Québec.
Annie Carrier, Alexandra Éthier, Michaël Beaudoin and 4 others
PMID 33678033WHAT IT FOUND
Most occupational therapists act as change agents only in clinical settings, communicating with families and colleagues.
Very few target political actors or use mass media. Therapists with more experience or extra training were more likely to engage in broader social advocacy.
Key findings
01Participants primarily used clinical actions like communicating, informing, and collaborating, and targeted patients' families, colleagues, and managers.
02Actions related to mass communication, such as giving speeches or talking to the media, were rare among participants.
03Therapists with additional academic degrees or training in change agency used a wider variety of actions, including social ones like creating networks and giving speeches.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study used a convenience sample of therapists who attended a specific training session, so the results may not represent all occupational therapists in Québec. The sample size was small, which increases the risk of missing real differences (Type II error). The survey was completed immediately after a training session on the topic, which may have influenced participants to report actions they felt were expected or desirable (desirability bias). The questionnaire used had not been previously validated for its measurement properties, although its content was reviewed by experts.
Declared interests
The study was conducted as part of a research partnership with the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists-Québec chapter (CAOT-Qc).
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that therapists who do not engage in social or political advocacy are unwilling to do so. The study suggests that engagement in these areas is linked to experience and specific training, implying that many therapists may lack the necessary skills or confidence rather than the motivation.