How are Marginalized Communities Represented in the Indian Journal of Occupational Therapy? A Scoping Review

Abstract

Background: Transforming occupational therapy (OT) practices and services to be more inclusive and political so that everyone has an opportunity to engage with meaningful occupations to advance their health and wellbeing is critical. An occupational justice framework locates occupations in a socio-cultural-historical context influencing the community or person's choice and participation. Communities marginalized due to socio-cultural-historical context struggle with participating in preferred occupations, which in turn affects their well-being and sense of self. Patriarchy, Gender binarism, Heteronormativity, Ableism, Casteism, and Classism are some dominant systems of oppression that affect how communities and people choose and participate in occupations. As occupational therapists and researchers, it becomes imperative to understand the experience of marginalized communities to contextualize interventions and evaluations to address the cultural practices of oppression. Objective: To understand how marginalized identity locations are represented in the Indian Journal of OT (IJOT). Study Design: A scoping review. Methods: Arksey and O'Malley's methodology was used to review research papers published in the IJOT from January 2012 to April 2022. Results: Disabled people have been the most represented in the last decade. Women's experiences are represented as lesser than that of men. Within studies focusing on disabilities, men's experiences are represented more than women's. There are two papers in the last decade that focus on Adivasi people. Lesbian, Gay, Trans, Queer, Intersex, Bisexual, and Asexual + communities are absent from OT research in the IJOT. Dalits and Bahujans are also absent from research. Few studies use the person-centered model of intervention by partnering with clients, whereas most studies use a medical model where the therapist is the only expert. Conclusion: In this study, we derive three themes to explore possible explanations on why marginalized communities are underrepresented. These themes of “unconscious bias,” “history repeats itself” and “medical model of research” help us understand factors we need to reflect on as OT researchers and therapists as we engage with communities and people.