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1987; 67:695-701.PHYS THER. O'Sullivan and Betty DentonRoberta M
Schwertner, Dorothy Pinkston, PatriciaSatisfactionRelationship
Between Perceptions and JobChanges in Perceptions of Professional
Role and Transition from Student to Physical Therapist :
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Transition from Student to Physical Therapist Changes in
Perceptions of Professional Role and Relationship Between
Perceptions and Job Satisfaction ROBERTA M. SCHWERTNER, DOROTHY
P1NKSTON, PATRICIA O'SULLIVAN, and BETTY DENTON
A longitudinal study of 15 entry-level postbaccalaureate degree
graduates was conducted to determine whether their perceptions of
the professional role of the physical therapist and of self in that
role changed after employment had begun and whether a relationship
exists between these perceptions and job satisfaction. Data were
collected by mail using a semantic differential test for measuring
role perceptions and a questionnaire that included items related to
job satisfaction and to demographic data. The return rate was 93%.
At the time of data collection, the graduates had been employed for
12 to 18 months. The data on role perceptions were compared with
data previously reported by Fincher Corb et al4 that had been
collected on these same subjects when they entered the physical
therapy education program and when they completed the program.
Kendall's coefficient of concordance revealed significant
differences (p < .05) in three concepts relating to the
professional role of the physical therapist and in one concept
relating to self in that role. In each instance, the role
perception score was lower after 12 to 18 months of employment. Job
satisfaction scores were relatively high among the subjects.
Spearman correlation coefficients calculated between job
satisfaction and role perception scores revealed a positive and
direct relationship between three role concepts and job
satisfaction. Results of this study provide information about the
professional socialization process in physical therapy. Key Words:
Education, Physical therapy, Self concept, Students.
Professional socialization is the process of "induction into a
professional role, within the context of a socializing agent."1
This process consists of three basic components. The first
component is the socializing environment, which includes the
concrete physical environment in addition to symbolic influ-ences
such as culture and social structure. The values, atti-tudes,
expectations, and perspectives the individual brings into this
process comprise the second component. The third component is the
outcome of the socialization experience. If the events in the
socialization process are intense and mean-ingful enough, changes
may occur in the individual's attitudes, beliefs, and perceptions.1
What one perceives is both directly and indirectly influenced by
the environment and the length of time exposed to the event.2
A longitudinal study of the socialization process of physical
therapy students at The University of Alabama at Birming-ham (UAB)
was begun by fellow investigators in 1981. Fecteau3 and Fincher
Corb et al4 studied student perceptions of the professional role of
the physical therapist and of self in that role at various stages
in the professional education pro-gram. In these studies, the only
significant change that oc-curred in the perceptions the students
held of the professional role of the physical therapist or of self
in that role was in the concept of "me as clinical researcher."4
Fincher Corb et al reported that the students demonstrated less
favorable percep-tions relating to this concept between entrance
into the pro-gram and completion of their second year. They
attributed this change to the heavy emphasis placed on the research
process at this point in the curriculum and further suggested that
the overall lack of change that occurred was attributable to the
fairly favorable and stable perceptions held by students on
entering and continuing the educational program.4
Kramer5 and others6,7 reported that professional role
per-ceptions may change or shift when the student begins
em-ployment. Conflict between role perceptions, expectations, and
realities experienced in the work environment may result in job
dissatisfaction.8-10 The purposes of this study were 1) to describe
the changes that occurred in the subjects' percep-tions of the
professional role of the physical therapist and of self in that
role after employment and 2) to determine whether a relationship
exists between these role perceptions and job satisfaction. This
information can be useful for determining whether students' initial
perceptions are consistent with those
Ms. Schwertner is Center Coordinator for Clinical Education,
Rotary Reha-bilitation Center, Mobile, AL 36617. She was a student
in the postprofessional Master of Science program in physical
therapy, The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL,
when this study was completed. Address all correspondence to 122
Booth Circle, Ocean Springs, MS 39564 (USA).
Dr. Pinkston is Professor, Division of Physical Therapy, School
of Commu-nity and Allied Health, University Station, The University
of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294.
Dr. O'Sullivan is Associate Professor, Center for Nursing
Research, The University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Ms. Denton is Assistant Professor, Division of Physical Therapy,
School of Community and Allied Health, The University of Alabama at
Birmingham.
The results of this study were presented in poster format at the
Sixty-Second Annual Conference of the American Physical Therapy
Association, Chicago, IL, June 8-12, 1986.
This article was submitted August 21, 1985; was with the authors
for revision 32 weeks; and was accepted August 5, 1986. Potential
Conflict of Interest: 4.
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developed with experience in the field,4 for developing future
academic and clinical components of the physical therapy curricula,
and for counseling students for job placement. Two research
hypotheses were proposed. 1. The perception of the professional
role of the physical
therapist and of self in that role would change significantly
across three time periods: initial entry into the professional
education program, graduation from the program, and after 12 to 18
months of employment.
2. A positive and direct relationship would exist between the
level of job satisfaction and the subjects' perception of the
professional role of the physical therapist and of self in that
role.
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
Professional socialization generally has been considered to
occur during the professional education process.6 Some au-thors
argue, however, that professional socialization continues after
graduation. Olmstead and Paget compared the profes-sional
socialization process of medical students to the social-ization
process of the childhood and adult stages of life.6 These authors
viewed medical school as an extension of childhood socialization in
that it "typically provides the stu-dent with a core of attitudes,
values, and norms which have as their content what medical
professors believe doctors 'should' and 'should not' do and think
in a variety of situa-tions."6
In addition, this process occurs in an environment that forces
the medical student into a learner role that is charac-terized by a
student-teacher relationship rather than by a peer relationship. In
essence, the student must first learn the role of a student in
which one is expected to function for four years. The student
gradually must learn the professional role through the demands of
internship, residency, and practice. These authors concluded that
because the socializing struc-tures of the classroom and medical
practice setting are quite different, "views on professional
socialization should be ex-panded to include more than medical
school."6
Kramer, in a study of June 1965 graduates from three California
State College nursing programs, reported that role perceptions and
role models changed significantly during the first six months of
employment after graduation.5 The find-ings from that study
suggested that nurses became more bureaucratically oriented the
longer they were employed and that this shift was associated with a
shift away from a profes-sionally centered model to a work-centered
model. Kramer believed that discrepancies may exist between the
nursing roles learned by the student and those encountered in the
work environment.5 Mathews-Gentry reported similar find-ings based
on feedback from recent physical therapy gradu-ates.11 This
phenomenon is termed "reality shock" and has been defined as the
phenomenon that occurs when a conflict exists between the values
and expectations developed during the professional education
process and the realities encoun-tered in the work
environment.11
Others also have reported this phenomenon in physical
therapy.9,10 Gwyer, in a study of 1972 graduates, found that 33%
reported a definite conflict between "personal views of the ideal
role of a physical therapist and the roles they found themselves in
as therapists," and two thirds of the respondents expressed the
frustration of being too prepared for their prac-tice.9 Yarbrough
completed an ethnographic study of physical
therapists in a suburban community hospital and reported that
the therapists felt they were not allowed to practice as
independently as they had been prepared to function. She stated
that "young staff were disillusioned and frustrated in their
attempts to adapt to the constraints placed on their work."10 This
role conflict may result in job dissatisfaction8-9 and a high
turnover rate.10
Job satisfaction may be defined as the feelings one has toward
work.12 These feelings are related to perceived expec-tations and
values.8,12 An individual's perceptions on entering a job,
therefore, are important contributors to job satisfac-tion.8,9
Other factors that have been related to high levels of job
satisfaction include: opportunities for autonomy, upward
mobility,9,13 promotion,9,13,14 new learning experiences,8
pos-itive self-esteem,13 important work that gives a feeling of
accomplishment,14 a variety of work experiences, a supportive
staff, and available resources.8
Some authors have reported differences in value systems related
to job responsibilities. Weaver and Holmes, in a study of 631
hospital employees, reported that those at the top of the job
hierarchy valued important work that gives a feeling of
accomplishment.14 Those in the middle of the job hierarchy were
most concerned with the opportunities for promotion, and those at
the lower end valued a high income.14
Although many researchers have investigated the sociali-zation
process in professional education and levels of job satisfaction
among health care professionals, few have inves-tigated the
influence of work experience on professional so-cialization or the
relationship between the perception of professional roles and the
level of job satisfaction. The purpose of this study was to
investigate these factors among physical therapists.
METHOD
Subjects This study was a continuation of a study conducted
by
Fincher Corb et al4 and included the same 15 students as
subjects. The overall study of professional role perceptions
received approval from the UAB's Institutional Review Board for
Human Use. The subjects consisted of the 15 graduates of the 1983
postbaccalaureate degree entry-level program for physical therapy
at UAB. All members of the graduating class of 1983 volunteered to
participate in the study, although eventually only 14 subjects
provided the requisite data.
Procedure
For the purposes of this study, three tests were used. Test I
was administered on entry into the professional program, and Test
II was conducted one day before graduation. These tests correspond
with Tests I and V, respectively, as reported by Fincher Corb et
al.4 We conducted Test III 19 months after graduation. Because of
different beginning employment dates, the range for length of
employment was from 12 to 18 months.
Two measurement tools were used for data collection: a semantic
differential test15 and the short form of the Minne-sota
Satisfaction Questionnaire (MSQ).16 The semantic differ-ential test
developed by Fecteau3 was used for assessing role perceptions and
perceptions of self in the role of the physical therapist. The
format and characteristics of the test have been reported in detail
by Fincher Corb et al.4
The short form of the MSQ was used to measure the overall level
of job satisfaction. Permission to use the form was
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EDUCATION
TABLE 1 Summary of Demographic Data (N = 14)
Variable
Sex Male Female
Age(yr) 25-29 >29
State practiced in In state (Alabama) Out of state
Population8 of town practiced in 10,000-14,999 25,000-49,999
50,000-99,999 >99,999
Number of practice settings since graduation
1 2
Employment status Full-time salaried
Gross annual income $21,000-$24,999 $25,000-$49,999
Professional organization member Yes No
n
3 11
12 2
6 8
1 1 1
10
7 7
14
11 3
6 8
%
21 79
86 14
43 57
8 8 8
76
50 50
100
79 21
43 57
TABLE 2 Length of Employment in Months (N = 14)
s Median Range
In Present Job
11.21 6.00
14.50 14.00
Since Graduation
17.00 0.88
17.00 2.00
TABLE 3 Type of Facility in Which Employed (N = 14)
Type
Hospital Private practice Rehabilitation center Hospital and
extended care
n
8 2 3 1
% 57 14 21
7
granted by the Department of Vocational Psychology Re-search,
University of Minnesota. The short form of the MSQ consists of 20
items representing the 20 principal scales of the long form of the
MSQ. These items are intended to measure job reinforcers and
satisfaction with these reinforcers. A gen-eral job satisfaction
score can be obtained by summing across all 20 items. This
measurement tool has been demonstrated to be valid and reliable
with a median reliability coefficient of .90 for general
satisfaction. An additional benefit of the short form of the MSQ is
that the questionnaire may be completed in 5 to 10 minutes.16
The measurement tools along with a cover letter and de-mographic
data sheet were mailed to each subject. A tele-phone call was made
to nonrespondents three weeks later,
and a second mailing was conducted as necessary. Fourteen
responses were received for a return rate of 93%. One of the 14
responses was unusable for data analysis of role perceptions
because of missing Test II data. That respondent's question-naires
were usable, however, for other data analysis.
Data Analysis
Analysis for the first hypothesis was performed for each of the
five concepts constituting the role of the physical therapist and
for the four concepts of self in that role. The data collected at
Test III from the semantic differential test were compared to the
data recorded in Tests I and II. A Kendall's coefficient of
concordance Wwas calculated for each concept across the three
tests. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences-X (SPSS-X)
was used for analysis.17 Testing for significant dif-ference was
set at the .05 level. A post hoc analysis18 was performed for each
concept where a significant difference was shown.
For the second hypothesis, Spearman correlation coeffi-cients
were calculated between the general job satisfaction score, the
perception score for each of the concepts, and the demographic
data. The coefficients were tested to determine whether the
relationship was significant and direct. The level of significance
was set at the .05 level. The SPSS-X computer package17 was used
for analysis.
RESULTS
Analysis of the demographic data revealed that the majority of
the subjects were women (n = 11). Most were between the ages of 25
and 29 years, practiced in cities with a population greater than
99,999, received an annual salary between $21,000 and $24,999, and
had practiced an average of 17 months since graduation (Tabs. 1,
2). All were full-time salaried employees, approximately half of
whom were em-ployed in Alabama and half in other states (Tab. 1).
Seventy-one percent of the respondents reported that they were
em-ployed as staff physical therapists (n = 10), and 29% were
employed as directors of physical therapy (n = 3) or as a
supervisor (n = 1). The majority practiced in a hospital setting,
and the others practiced in rehabilitation centers and private
practices (Tab. 3). The group was distributed equally between
employment in one or two practice settings since graduation (Tab.
1). The subjects reported spending most of their time in direct
patient care; some time in administration-manage-ment,
supervision-coordination, teaching, and consulting; and little, if
any, time in research or screening-prevention activities (Tab. 4).
Almost half of the subjects reported mem-bership in a professional
organization (Tab. 1).
Kendall's coefficient of concordance performed on the concepts
of the professional role of the physical therapist and of self in
that role demonstrated significant differences in the following
concepts: "physical therapist as clinical researcher," "physical
therapist as clinical instructor," "physical therapist as
professional organization member," and "me as clinical researcher."
A post hoc analysis revealed that the significant differences
occurred primarily between Tests I and III (Tabs. 5, 6). For the
"physical therapist as clinical researcher" con-cept, we found
significant differences between Tests II and III and between Tests
I and III (Tab. 5). The significant difference in the "physical
therapist as professional organization mem-ber" concept was found
between Tests II and III (Tab. 5). The
a One score missing.
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current role perceptions were less favorable for each of these
concepts across the three test times.
The mean general job satisfaction score for the group was 77.79
(s = 9.97, range = 33.00). Spearman correlation coef-ficients
demonstrated a positive and direct relationship be-tween job
satisfaction and the concepts of "me as clinical instructor,"
"physical therapist as physical therapy depart-
TABLE 4 Distribution of Time Spent in Activities in the Role of
the Physical Therapist (N = 14)
Activity
Direct patient care Administration-
management Supervision-
coordination Teaching Consulting Research
Screening-prevention
0%
n
5
2 4 9
13 11
%
36
14 29 64 93 79
1 % -25%
n %
7 50
12 86 10 71 5 36 1 7 3 21
26%-50%
n 1
2
% 7
14
5 1 % -75%
n % 6 43
76%-100%
n %
7 50
ment head," and "physical therapist as professional
organi-zation member" (Tab. 7).
DISCUSSION
Demographic Data The demographic data in this study closely
resemble the
data presented in the American Physical Therapy Associa-tion's
1982 Active Member Profile.19 These data also are similar to the
demographic data of a sample of 1983 active members of the APTA
reported in a study by Morrow.20
These similarities suggest that the subjects who participated in
this study are characteristic of active members of the APTA.
Role Perceptions
The results of this study demonstrated that role perceptions
change after the first 12 to 18 months of employment. These data
support the theory that the professional socialization process
continues after the formal education period6 and are consistent
with other reports of changing role perceptions in the work
environment.5,7,21 Only one concept relating to self in the
professional role of the physical therapist changed. All other
changes occurred in the concepts relating to the subject's
TABLE 5 Summary of Scores of Perceptions of the Role of the
Physical Therapist (N = 13) (Possible Range of Scores: 16-112)
Concepts
Phvsical therapist as staff physical therapist rank
Median Range
s Physical therapist as physical therapy depart-
ment head rank
Median Range
s Physical therapist as clinical researchera
rank Median Range
s Physical therapist as clinical instructora
rank Median Range
s Physical therapist as professional organization
membera rank
Median Range
s
I Beginning
of Program
2.19 97.50 26.00 97.38
7.97
2.08 99.00 38.00 97.88 9.25
2.31b 94.00 34.00 92.94
8.47
2.38b 100.00 22.00 98.38
6.51
2.19 92.00 35.00 90.38 9.19
Tests
II Completion of Program
1.92 94.00 23.00 94.14 7.40
2.42 100.00 29.00 97.86
8.92
2.31b 95.50 34.00 92.71 9.89
2.15 97.00 34.00 96.71 10.16
2.46b 93.00 31.00 91.36 10.08
III During
Employment
1.88 94.00 26.00 94.21
8.37
1.50 99.00 26.00 94.86
8.56
1.38b 90.50 29.00 88.43 7.93
1.46b 95.00 24.00 93.71
7.60
1.35b 86.00 32.00 81.86 11.04
a Kendall's coefficient of concordance W significant at the .05
level. b Significant (p < .05) pair-wise differences from post
hoc analysis.
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EDUCATION
TABLE 6 Summary of Scores of Graduates' Perceptions of
Themselves in the Role of the Physical Therapist (N = 13) (Possible
Range of Scores: 16-112)
Concepts
Me as staff physical therapist rank
Median Range
s Me as physical therapy
department head rank
Median Range
s Me as clinical
researchera
rank Median Range
s Me as clinical instructor
rank Median Range
s
I Beginning
of Program
2.38 98.00 32.00 97.56
8.35
2.38 103.00 32.00
101.73 7.62
2.69b
93.50 32.00 92.88
8.75
2.50 99.00 18.00 98.50
5.50
Tests
II Completion of Program
1.96 94.00 31.00 90.57
9.56
1.92 96.00 33.00 93.93
9.89
2.00 91.00 39.00 88.29 10.25
1.81 96.00 31.00 93.21 10.21
III During
Employment
1.65 91.00 35.00 90.86
8.74
1.69 96.50 29.00 93.21
9.63
1.31b
85.00 53.00 80.00 16.01
1.69 92.50 30.00 91.86
8.38
TABLE 7 Concepts Correlated with Satisfaction (N = 14)
Concepts
Me as clinical instructor Physical therapist as physical
ther-
apy department head Physical therapist as professional
organization member
Spearman Correlation Coefficient
.49
.56
.66
Probabilitya
.04
.02
.01
perceptions of the professional role of the physical therapist.
Changes in professional role concepts but not in self-concepts
suggest either that these subjects hold favorable perceptions of
themselves in the professional role, even though their perceptions
of the role have changed, or that the changes in the perceptions of
the professional role have not been great enough to have influenced
changes in the perceptions of self in that role.
Three of the five concepts related to the professional role of
the physical therapist demonstrated significant differences.
Changes in role perceptions after becoming employed may be
explained by Kramer5 and Eli and Shuval22 who reported that
educational programs promote professional goals and ideals that are
inconsistent with those encountered in the work
environment. That graduates are less professionally oriented and
more work oriented after becoming employed5,21 also could help to
explain this change. Moreover, attitudes toward the professional
role may be a function of the roles occupied and tasks performed on
the job.7,21,22 The two concepts relat-ing to the professional role
that remained constant were "physical therapist as physical therapy
department head" and "physical therapist as staff physical
therapist." Ten of the subjects who were staff physical therapists
and 3 who were physical therapy department heads spent little time
in teach-ing, no time in research, and were not professional
organiza-tion members. The reinforcement on the job in the roles of
staff physical therapist and department head in addition to the
lack of reinforcement in the roles of clinical researcher, clinical
instructor, and professional organization member may contribute to
the changes in perceptions found in this study.
Tables 5 and 6 reveal that a gradual decline in perception
scores occurred for six of the nine concepts across the three
tests. The decline in scores was most marked in each test for the
concepts "physical therapist as clinical instructor," "me as
clinical researcher," and "me as clinical instructor." The
continued decline in perception scores relating to self in the
professional role may be supportive of the hypothesis that changes
in the perceptions of the professional role have not been great
enough to have influenced changes in the percep-tions of self in
that role.
The more favorable perceptions held by the respondents on entry
into the physical therapy education program could have been the
result of what has been termed "anticipatory socialization."23,24
Anticipatory socialization has been re-ported among medical
students and nurses.23,24 The process is considered a form of
self-socialization and occurs in an effort to prepare oneself for a
professional career.23 The de-cline in favorable perceptions may be
the result of earlier incorrect assumptions or information23 or
could be related to inconsistencies between what was expected and
what was encountered.5 No evidence exists indicating that the
percep-tions of the professional role or of self in that role have
stabilized for these subjects.
Another important finding, also reported by Fincher Corb et al,4
was that the only concept that changed significantly during the
formal education program, "me as clinical re-searcher," is
continuing to decline. Morrow reported that nondelegate active
members of the APTA held mildly to moderately favorable attitudes
toward research in physical therapy.20 If the attitudes of these
subjects are consistent with those of other clinicians, the APTA's
striving for further research and continued professionalization in
physical ther-apy could be impeded unless strategies are developed
to promote more positive attitudes.20
Job Satisfaction
Significant changes occurring in the concepts relating to the
professional role of the physical therapist but not to self in that
role could be indicative of professional role ambiguity. Brief et
al24 and Speedling et al25 reported that role ambiguity can lead to
job insecurities and dissatisfaction. The subjects in this study,
however, generally appeared to be satisfied with their jobs (mean
job satisfaction score = 77.79). Job satisfac-tion in the presence
of role ambiguity may be explained by researchers who report that
role perceptions and their per-ceived importance are separate
entities contributing to job
a Kendall's coefficient of concordance W significant at the .05
level. b Significant (p < .05) pair-wise differences from post
hoc analysis.
ap
-
satisfaction.8,26 Although some researchers have studied the
influence of value systems on job satisfaction,14,27 the scope has
been limited. Further research is recommended to deter-mine the
perceived importance of each professional role and the relationship
between the value placed on each role and job satisfaction among
physical therapists.
General job satisfaction scores were similar between this group
of physical therapists and engineers, the only profes-sional group
for which normative data for the short form of the MSQ are
available for comparisons.16 Both groups dem-onstrated higher
satisfaction scores than technically trained workers.16 Atwood and
Wolf28 and Broski and Cook13 also reported higher levels of job
satisfaction among physical ther-apists when compared with
technically trained workers and with other health care
professionals.
A positive and direct relationship was found between job
satisfaction scores and each of the concepts of "me as clinical
instructor," "physical therapist as physical therapy depart-ment
head," and "physical therapist as professional organi-zation
member." Characteristics that have been shown by others to be
related to job satisfaction include autonomy,9,13 important work,14
and higher levels of work.13,27 Although these characteristics were
not analyzed specifically in this study, individual perception
scores, job satisfaction scores, and demographic data revealed that
three of the five highest job satisfaction scores were obtained by
two respondents who were physical therapy department heads and one
who was a supervisor and professional organization member. Two of
the three individuals with the highest job satisfaction scores also
demonstrated the highest perception scores for the concepts "me as
clinical instructor," "physical therapist as physical therapy
department head," and "physical therapist as profes-sional
organization member." These observations could in-dicate that the
subjects who scored highest on these three concepts experience more
autonomy, tend to be profession-ally oriented, and participate in
higher level job activities than the other subjects.
Other demographic variables such as age, sex, and salary were
not related to job satisfaction among the subjects in this study.
Because of the restrictive range in age, sex, and salary, a
relationship between these variables and job satisfaction would be
difficult to demonstrate. Other investigators have reported that
age, sex, and salary do contribute to job satis-faction.12,28
Further research is recommended to identify professional job
characteristics that contribute to job satisfac-tion among physical
therapists.
STUDY IMPLICATIONS
Outcomes of this study have implications for physical ther-apy
education and initial employment of graduates. The
implications are similar to findings and suggestions reported by
Gwyer9 and Yarbrough.10
1. Physical therapy faculties should make an effort to
deter-mine the extent of consistency between the professional goals
emphasized in their education programs and those demonstrated in
the work environment.
2. Educators should teach students strategies for coping with
discrepancies and effective mechanisms for facilitating change.
3. Clinical experiences should be expanded to allow students
more time to function in the "real" work environment and to
practice coping and changing strategies.
4. Graduates should be guided into initial employment
situ-ations that offer professional stimulation and facilitate
positive role perceptions.
5. Methods for promoting favorable role perceptions in the
clinical setting should be developed.
Future research in the area of professional socialization would
provide a more complete picture of the socialization process of
physical therapists than was obtained in this study if data are
collected over longer periods of time and if more sensitive
measurement tools are used. The following recom-mendations are made
to help strengthen future research de-signs: 1. Samples of subjects
should include representatives from
several different educational institutions. 2. Personal and
environmental influences on the socialization
process should be analyzed. 3. Data collection should be
conducted just before the edu-
cational program and continue through several years of
employment.
4. Recorded interviews should be used in addition to other
methods for collection and analysis of data. Insight into
individuals' feelings and perceptions may be gained through facial
expressions and fluctuations in voice tones.
CONCLUSIONS
The results of this longitudinal study demonstrate that the role
perceptions of 15 physical therapy graduates continued to change
after graduation and support the theory of contia-ued professional
socialization. The data also suggest that the members of this group
of physical therapists generally are satisfied with their jobs even
in the presence of changing role perceptions. Finally, the results
of this study demonstrate that role perceptions may contribute to
job satisfaction. This in-formation can be useful in developing
physical therapy cur-ricula and in guiding students into their
initial employment.
REFERENCES 1. Levinson DJ: Medical education and the theory of
adult socialization. J
Health Soc Behav 8:253-265, 1967 2. Combs AW, Richards AC,
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1987; 67:695-701.PHYS THER. O'Sullivan and Betty DentonRoberta M
Schwertner, Dorothy Pinkston, PatriciaSatisfactionRelationship
Between Perceptions and JobChanges in Perceptions of Professional
Role and Transition from Student to Physical Therapist :
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