Perspectives on disability among physical therapists: a Q study.

Area of Science:

• Rehabilitation Science
• Disability Studies
• Health Professional Education

Background:

• Discourses of health professionals, especially physical therapists, significantly impact disabled patients.
• Empirical study of these discourses is limited.
• Traditional research methods may not fully capture diverse viewpoints on disability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and characterize current discourses on disability among physical therapists.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional Q-study methodology was employed.
• Fifty-three physical therapists participated in the study.
• Q-factor analysis identified three distinct viewpoints on disability.

Main Results:

• Three primary viewpoints emerged: Context-accounting Biomedical View, Socio-psycho-biological View, and Realist-Antiableist View.
• All viewpoints incorporated biopsychosocial elements, with varying emphasis on biomedical, social, or anti-ableist aspects.
• Participants generally rejected ableist statements, though with some inconsistency.

Conclusions:

• Q methodology effectively characterized physical therapists' diverse perspectives on disability.
• The identified viewpoints highlight varied emphases on biopsychosocial, biomedical, social, and anti-ableist approaches.
• Findings underscore the complexity of disability conceptions within the physical therapy profession.