OTJR: Occupational Therapy Journal of Research

Occupational therapists concerned with the long-term health and welfare of children need to be aware of the decline in physical activity of children in most Western societies. The current study examined the extent of physical activity in the lives of 50 Australian children with a mean age of 7.74 years through questionnaires completed by the children's parents and pedometer (step) data collected from the children during 4 days. The current data show that higher self-perception of physical competence, child's levels of physical skill, and low parental perception of peer teasing were the best predictors of physical activity. Higher family socioeconomic status was found to be a significant predictor of more steps being taken on weekends, and partner's (usually a father's) level of exercise was an important predictor of the number of weekend steps. Children who were perceived to experience more peer teasing completed fewer steps on the weekend. The findings from this study indicate that children's physical activity levels may depend on the availability of family resources, and that children in their early school years may already experience negative effects from teasing that, combined with reduced self-confidence, may lay the foundation for their withdrawing from physical activity as they get older.

An epistemological analysis of occupational therapy's history opens a novel perspective on the field's evolution and on important changes facing education and practice. Kegan's theory of epistemological transformation (e.g., how ways of knowing evolve) was used as an analytic tool to reexamine mostly secondary and some primary historical sources. Although the profession's history is often portrayed in terms of large and sweeping changes, this analysis suggests that little change occurred in occupational therapy's epistemology, making it difficult for the profession to become self-defined or easily adopt occupation, participation, and health as a focus for practice, education, and research. It is also suggested that recent developments in the field are at their core epistemological developments and serve as indicators that a new way of knowing has emerged in occupational therapy that is making new demands of practitioners and educators. Further, epistemological developments can help evaluate common educational assumptions and frame new educational approaches.

The process of flow, a psychological state that seems to occur during optimal human experience, is currently unclear. This exploratory study examines how flow begins and what happens during and after a flow experience. A phenomenological approach was taken to examine the flow experiences of an artist, a musician, and a horticulturist. Participants kept journals and participated in semi-structured interviews. The results suggest that two phenomena, “challenge-skills” and “mindfulness,” were identified as being “flow” experiences. Challenge-skills and mindfulness had some common features. Both involved living in the present moment, not worrying, and performing activities because they were intrinsically rewarding. They were distinctly different experiences in regard to the effort involved, the perception of time, and the consequences of the experience. Understanding the process of challenge-skills and mindfulness may have implications for our understanding of the relationship between occupation, consciousness, and health and for occupational therapy practice.

The general objective of the “Rehabilitation Medicine Summit: Building Research Capacity” was to advance and promote research in medical rehabilitation by making recommendations to expand research capacity. The five elements of research capacity that guided the discussions were: (1) researchers; (2) research culture, environment, and infrastructure; (3) funding; (4) partnerships; and (5) metrics. The 100 participants included representatives of professional organizations, consumer groups, academic departments, researchers, governmental funding agencies, and the private sector. The small group discussions and plenary sessions generated an array of problems, possible solutions, and recommended actions. A post-Summit, multi-organizational initiative is called to pursue the agendas outlined in this report.