Approaches to studying predict academic performance in undergraduate occupational therapy students: a cross-cultural study

BMC Medical Education

Research Article

Tore Bonsaksen¹  Ted Brown²  Kenneth Fong³  Hua Beng Lim⁴ 

[1] Department of Occupational Therapy, Prosthetics and Orthotics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, PO Box 4, St. Olavs Plass, 0130, Oslo, Norway;Faculty of Health Studies, VID Specialized University, Sandnes, Norway;Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Primary Health Care, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Monash University – Peninsula Campus, Frankston, VIC, Australia;Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong;Occupational Therapy, School of Health Sciences (Allied Health), Nanyang Polytechnic, Singapore, Singapore;

关键词: Academic performance;    Cross-cultural study;    Grade point average;    Higher education;    Occupational therapy;    Students;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12909-017-0914-3

 received in 2016-08-04, accepted in 2017-04-26,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundLearning outcomes may be a result of several factors including the learning environment, students’ predispositions, study efforts, cultural factors and approaches towards studying. This study examined the influence of demographic variables, education-related factors, and approaches to studying on occupational therapy students’ Grade Point Average (GPA).MethodsUndergraduate occupational therapy students (n = 712) from four countries completed the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST). Demographic background, education-related factors, and ASSIST scores were used in a hierarchical linear regression analysis to predict the students’ GPA.ResultsBeing older, female and more time engaged in self-study activities were associated with higher GPA among the students. In addition, five ASSIST subscales predicted higher GPA: higher scores on ‘seeking meaning’, ‘achieving’, and ‘lack of purpose’, and lower scores on ‘time management’ and ‘fear of failure’. The full model accounted for 9.6% of the variance related to the occupational therapy students’ GPA.ConclusionsTo improve academic performance among occupational therapy students, it appears important to increase their personal search for meaning and motivation for achievement, and to reduce their fear of failure. The results should be interpreted with caution due to small effect sizes and a modest amount of variance explained by the regression model, and further research on predictors of academic performance is required.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s). 2017