Self-efficacy for therapeutic mode use among occupational therapy students in Norway

Background: The intentional relationship model (IRM) proposes six distinct ways of relating to clients. A new instrument for measuring self-efficacy for using the therapeutic modes in occupational therapy practice was recently found to have good psychometric properties. To date, however, no research has investigated factors associated with self-efficacy for therapeutic mode use. Aim: This study aimed to explore sociodemographic and education-related factors associated with self-efficacy for therapeutic mode use in a sample of occupational therapy students in Norway. Methods: Occupational therapy students (n = 111) from two education programs completed the Norwegian version of the recently developed “Self-efficacy for therapeutic mode use” (N-SETMU), in addition to reporting sociodemographic and education-related information. Hierarchical linear regression analysis was used to examine factors independently associated with the students’ N-SETMU scores. Results: Higher N-SETMU scores were associated with better average academic performance among the students. Otherwise, none of the associations were statistically significant. Conclusions: As better academic results were linked with higher self-efficacy for therapeutic mode use, the study indicates that some students perform well academically and have high self-efficacy for practical skills, whereas others perform less well academically and have lower self-efficacy for practical skills. A potential transfer of self-efficacy beliefs from one area of performance (academic) to another (practical skills) seems possible, and this may be investigated in future studies