Meeting the Psychosocial Needs of the Students in Special Education: An Ethnographic Study

Abstract

One of the top 10 emerging practices as reported by the American Occupational Therapy Association is psychosocial occupational therapy. The purpose of this research was to examine the psychosocial practice of the school-based occupational therapist. This research study utilized a structured interview to identify and analyze the extent of the occupational therapist's understanding and application of psychosocial occupational therapy in meeting the needs of the students in special education. This study explored the occupational therapist's perception of his or her psychosocial educational background and existing training needs in psychosocial occupational therapy. Six themes emerged from the data analysis: (1) understanding of psychosocial occupational therapy, (2) role in meeting psychosocial needs, (3) measurement of effectiveness, (4) identification of practice models, (5) usefulness of occupational therapy education, and (6) additional training needs in occupational therapy.