Healthcare professions educational programs have a responsibility to develop professionally engaged lifelong learners. Knowledge of the factors important to the development of these desirable characteristics may inform educational leaders’ decisions about program and curriculum design. This study aimed to investigate the relation between level of education and an orientation towards lifelong learning and future professional engagement. In addition, the influence of learners’ type of motivation for continued learning, and learning goal orientation on this relation was also assessed.
A cross-sectional survey of learners from a single healthcare profession, physical therapy was conducted to investigate these relations. Physical therapist learners from across the United States at all levels of formal professional and post-professional education were included invited to participate in the anonymous online survey. Path analysis was used to analyze the relations between the included factors.
A total of 251 usable responses were included in the analysis. Results suggest that physical therapist learners increase their orientation toward lifelong learning and future professional engagement as they advance through the physical therapy education continuum. Furthermore, having greater autonomous and less controlled motivation increases this relation. Mastery goal orientation also had a positive direct effect on lifelong learning and professional engagement but this effect was independent of learners’ current level of education. Implications for educational leaders in the physical therapy profession are discussed along with recommendations for future research.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unf.edu/oai:digitalcommons.unf.edu:etd-1962 |
| Date | 01 January 2019 |
| Creators | Osborne, Raine |
| Publisher | UNF Digital Commons |
| Source Sets | University of North Florida |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations |
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