Date Presented 03/26/20
This project identified the leadership characteristics that master’s-level OT students demonstrate during their Level II fieldwork. Fieldwork educators reported that their students are effective communicators, show respect for employees, and respond to constructive criticism. Areas of improvement for the students include seeking out resources to drive action for change, taking risks by sharing new approaches, and taking on leadership roles by implementing new protocols.
Primary Author and Speaker: Breanna Chycinski
Additional Authors and Speakers: Kristin Willey
Contributing Authors: Amy Maurer, Summer Besteman, Jessica Mooney, Katelyn Campbell
BACKGROUND: Occupational therapy (OT) students are expected to demonstrate leadership qualities throughout their Level II Fieldwork experiences; however, it has been reported that students lack this quality. The purpose of this project was to identify the leadership characteristics that master’s-level OT students demonstrate and develop during their Level II Fieldwork experiences.
METHOD: This study utilized an online survey tool, Qualtrics, to understand the perceptions of Fieldwork Educators (FWEds) who have taken a Level II Fieldwork student within the past five years. A code-recode procedure was used to analyze the open-ended questions in order to categorize the qualitative data. The frequency and mode of responses were used to report the results of the Likert-scale questions.
RESULTS: A total of 25 participants completed the survey. FWEds reported that their students are effective communicators, show respect for employees in the workplace, and respond to constructive criticism. Areas of improvement for the students include seeking out resources to drive the action for change, taking risks by sharing new approaches, and taking on leadership roles by implementing new protocols.
CONCLUSION: This study has identified students’ areas of strength and areas that need improvement in regards to developing leadership qualities throughout their Level II Fieldwork experiences.
References
Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (1987). The leadership challenge: How to get extraordinary things done in organizations (1st ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Fleming-Castaldy, R. P., & Patro, J. (2012). Leadership in occupational therapy: Self-perceptions of occupational therapy managers. Occupational Therapy In Health Care, 26(2–3), 187–202. https://doi.org/10.3109/07380577.2012.697256
Schell, B. A. B., & Schell J. W. (2018). Clinical and professional reasoning in occupational therapy (2nd ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.
