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Perceived efficacy and goal setting in young children
1School of Rehabilitation Science, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. missiuna@fhs.mcmaster.ca
Summary
Young children can now assess their own performance and select occupational therapy goals using the Perceived Efficacy and Goal Setting System (PEGS). This client-centered approach empowers children in their therapy journey.
Area of Science:
- Occupational Therapy
- Pediatric Rehabilitation
- Client-Centered Practice
Background:
- Client-centered occupational therapy emphasizes client goal selection.
- Goal setting in pediatric occupational therapy is often therapist or parent-driven.
- A need exists for child-centered goal identification methods.
Purpose of the Study:
- To pilot test a measure and process for children to assess performance.
- To enable young children to establish goals for occupational therapy intervention.
- To evaluate the Perceived Efficacy and Goal Setting System (PEGS) with children aged 5-9.
Main Methods:
- Parents and children completed the Perceived Efficacy and Goal Setting System (PEGS).
- PEGS assesses children's perception of competence in fine and gross motor tasks.
- Children aged 5-9 rated their ability to perform daily tasks.
Main Results:
- Children aged 5-9 could discriminate tasks and rate their competence.
- Children utilized performance ratings to select and prioritize intervention goals.
- Parents generally rated children's competence lower than children did.
- High agreement existed on difficult tasks, but disagreement on goal selection/priority.
Conclusions:
- The PEGS measure and process show promise for enabling children's participation in goal setting.
- Children's self-assessment of performance can inform occupational therapy goal selection.
- Discrepancies between child and parent goal priorities warrant further investigation.