Philosophy and Occupational Therapy: Informing Education, Research, and Practice

by Steven Taff

Overview

Philosophy and Occupational Therapy: Informing Education, Research, and Practice provides an overview of the most influential philosophical movements from past to present and shows how these philosophies are a foundational, yet underutilized, element of occupational therapy education, research, and practice.

Editor Steven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA, fills a gap in existing occupational therapy literature by exploring the major thinkers and concepts of numerous different philosophical movements and examining their implications. Taff and a multitude of chapter authors demonstrate that the vital points of human existence are found in philosophy as well as science, and that occupational therapy should incorporate a clearly articulated philosophical perspective into its evidence-based and measurement-driven paradigm.

Each chapter offers a basic description of a philosophy, outlines major thinkers and concepts and ultimately summarizes the implications for occupational therapy education, research and practice.

Philosophy and Occupational Therapy: Informing Education, Research, and Practice is a unique and essential book for occupational therapy educators, researchers, and clinicians that will enrich the teaching-learning process, ground research with depth and clarity, and spark discussion among professionals about reviving the use of philosophy in current occupational therapy practice.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781040142073
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	06/01/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	275
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Steven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA, is Associate Professor in the Program in Occupational Therapy and Department of Medicine and Director of the Teaching Scholars Program at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. He is also co­founder of the Cross-­Campus Educational Research Group, a multidisciplinary community of educational scholars and innovators at Washington University in St. Louis. Dr. Taff served as Chair of the Commission on Education of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) from 2016 to 2019 and is also a member of the leadership group of the AOTA Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Program. He is a co­author of the AOTA Educational Research Agenda (Revised) and the Educator’s Guide for Addressing Cultural Awareness, Humility, and Dexterity in Occupational Therapy Curricula, and co­editor of the book Perspectives on Occupational Therapy Education: Past, Pre­sent, and ­Future. Dr. Taff was a recipient of the Emerson Excellence in Teaching Award in 2017.

Table of Contents

Dedication Acknowledgments About the Editor Contributing Authors Foreword: Philosophy and Professional Reflection, Change, and Growth by Barb Hooper, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA Chapter 1 What Is Philosophy? Steven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA Chapter 2 Reframing the Narrative on the Philosophies Influencing the Development of Occupational Therapy Steven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA, and Ganesh M. Babulal, PhD, OTD, MSCI, MOT, OTR/L Chapter 3 Focus on the ­Mental and Spiritual: Idealism and Occupational Therapy Wanda J. Mahoney, PhD, OTR/L, and Brad E. Egan, PhD, OTD, CADC, OTR/L Chapter 4 Realism: Exploring the Divide Between What Exists and What Humans Make of It Jyothi Gupta, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA, and Bernard A. K. Muriithi, PhD, OTR/L Chapter 5 A Teleological Perspective of Occupational Engagement: Humanism Informing Occupational Therapy Moses N. Ikiugu, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA, and Whitney Lucas­Molitor, PhD, OTD, MS, OTR/L, BCG Chapter 6 Occupation and Meaningful Living: An Existential Perspective Aaron M. Eakman, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA, and Moses N. Ikiugu, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA Chapter 7 Romanticism and Transcendentalism: Ideas That Made Occupational Therapy Possible and Holistic Practice Necessary Charles H. Christiansen, EdD, OTR, FAOTA Chapter 8 Slouching Toward Utopia: Hope, Fear, and the Pursuit of the Unattainable Richard L. Whalley, OTD, OTR/L;Anna J. Neff, OTD, MSCI, OTR/L; andSteven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA Chapter 9 Pragmatic Foundations: Instrumentalism and Transactionalism in Occupational Therapy Moses N. Ikiugu, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA, andRanelle M. Nissen, PhD, OTR/L Chapter 10 Phenomenology: Returning to the Things Themselves With Wonder and Curiosity Valerie A. Wright-­St Clair, PhD, MPH, DipProfEthics,DipBusStud, DipOT, and Elizabeth Anne Kinsella,PhD, MAdEd, BSc(OT) Chapter 11 Tools, Thoughts, and Signs: Sociocultural Perspectives on Mind and Occupation Arun Selvaratnam, MS, OTR/L, andSteven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA Chapter 12 An African Philosophy of Personhood in Southern Occupational Therapy Thuli Mthembu, BSc OT, MPH, PhD, and Madeleine Duncan,DipOT, BOT, BAHons(Psych), MSc OT, DPhil(Psych) Chapter 13 Fundamental Impermanence: Process Philosophy and Occupational Potential Lauren Putnam, BS, andSteven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA Chapter 14 Analytic Philosophy: Guiding Method and Adding Precision to Occupational Therapy Marna Ghiglieri, OTD, MA, OTR/L;Ronald R. Drummond, BA; Rose McAndrew, OTD, OTR/L, CHT;and Steven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA Chapter 15 Structuralism: Examining the Interrelationships Around Occupation Ganesh M. Babulal, PhD, OTD, MSCI, MOT, OTR/L, andJyothi Gupta, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA Chapter 16 Critical Theory: Resources for Questioning and Transforming Everyday Life Lisette Farias, PhD, MScOT, Reg. OT, andRebecca M. Aldrich, PhD, OTR/L Chapter 17 Everyday Hermeneutics: Understanding (the Meaning of) Occupational Engagement Melissa Park, PhD, MA OT; Aaron Bonsall, PhD, OTR/L; andDon Fogelberg, PhD, OTR/L Chapter 18 Deconstruction and the Institution of Occupation Ganesh M. Babulal, PhD, OTD, MSCI, MOT, OTR/L;Anil H. Chandiramani; andSteven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA Chapter 19 Philosophical Influences on Occupational Therapy in Brazil: A Historical Timeline Daniel Marinho Cezar da Cruz, PhD, MSc, OT;Daniela da Silva Rodrigues, MSc, OT; andHelen Carey, PhD, MSc Adv OT, Dip COT, OTR/L Chapter 20 Postmodernism: Foundations for Problematizing and Reimagining Conditions of Possibility Rebecca M. Aldrich, PhD, OTR/L;Debbie Laliberte Rudman, PhD, OT Reg. (ON); andAaron Bonsall, PhD, OTR/L Chapter 21 Inter Sectionality: Feminist Theorizing in the Pursuit of Justice and Equity Alison Gerlach, PhD, MSc (OT), and Lilian Magalhães, PhD, OT Chapter 22 Capable and Occupied: How the Capabilities Approach Can Enrich the Occupation Discourse Ganesh M. Babulal, PhD, OTD, MSCI, MOT, OTR/L;Parul Bakhshi, PhD, DEA (MPhil); andJean­Francois Trani, PhD, MSc, MPhil Chapter 23 How Philosophy Can Support Occupational Therapy's Relevance in the 21st Century Steven D. Taff, PhD, OTR/L, FNAP, FAOTA;Moses N. Ikiugu, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA; andJyothi Gupta, PhD, OTR/L, FAOTA Financial Disclosures Index

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Sally Wasmuth, PhD, OTR (Indiana University - Purdue University Indianapolis)
Description: This book covers the main facets of philosophy and their relevance to occupational therapy. Each chapter concludes with a bulleted list of key implications for occupational therapy education, research, and practice as well as recommended philosophical readings. The introduction orients readers to some of the most influential movements in philosophy as well as those that were directly tied to the origins of occupational therapy such as Moral Treatment and the Mental Hygiene, Arts and Crafts, and Settlement House Movements. The book centralizes Deweyan pragmatism as informing the fundamental principles and philosophical foundations of occupational therapy while suggesting several additional philosophies and social movements as important in shaping the profession. These include but are not limited to existentialism, transcendentalism, phenomenology, African ethno-metaphysics, analytic philosophy, critical theory, intersectionality, and process philosophy. Overall, the book provides introductory knowledge on several schools of thought in philosophy, effortlessly linking them to key concepts in occupational therapy such as client-centeredness, humility, and critical reflection.
Purpose: This book emerged as a product of the editor's passion for "re-engaging the philosophical conversations in occupational therapy." The authors orient readers to the ways in which philosophy has shaped occupational therapy education, research, and clinical practice. Chapters encourage students, educators, researchers, and practitioners of occupational therapy to actively engage with philosophical principles and practices - the book therefore extends beyond a retelling of our philosophical foundations and instead invites and encourages readers to grapple with application of philosophical principles and tools to change the way they understand and experience occupational therapy. While the profession's philosophical foundations have perhaps receded from conscious everyday awareness, this book invites a reclamation of philosophy in the field and illustrates for readers how various tiers of philosophy can critically inform and improve how we understand, teach, learn, and do occupational therapy. In an era when it is becoming increasingly difficult to delineate the allied health professions from one another, this reclamation is critically needed. This book is an excellent first step toward infusing occupational therapy with the rich and eclectic tools and insights available from key thinkers in the field of philosophy.
Audience: This book is written for students, researchers, educators, and practitioners. It encourages readers to revisit and embrace the knowledge and guidance that philosophy can offer as we encounter and grapple with clinical and ethical decisions in our various sectors. The editor, Dr. Steven Taff, has presented nationally on educational philosophies and has co-authored several peer-reviewed articles. His passion and scholarly works make him a credible authority on the importance and role of philosophy in occupational therapy. The book meets the needs of its intended audience by offering content that can be applied by students, researchers, educators, and practitioners alike. For example, Park et al.'s chapter, "Everyday Hermeneutics: Understanding (the Meaning of) Occupational Engagement," offers an illustrative case example of a therapeutic encounter between an occupational therapist and a client who was referred to occupational therapy for "help with school" (p. 168). The case illustrates disruptions in the therapeutic relationship; the authors explain key hermeneutic concepts and illuminate how to use hermeneutic interpretive strategies to improve clinical encounters and professional reflection. This chapter could be useful in the classroom to help students examine their own biases and assumptions, and to help them evade common pitfalls of new clinicians such as imposing goals instead of remaining client centered. The case also exemplifies the importance of hermeneutic strategies and thus the use of philosophical schools of thinking to inform research approaches and interpretation of data. While this book provides applicable introductory knowledge of different philosophical schools of thought, those with a background in philosophy may perceive the book as cursory. Such readers may be left wanting more dialectical discussion about each school of thought, as the philosophies presented in the book are the subjects of ongoing critical debate and require deeper interpretive analysis.
Features: This book is impressive in scope, covering a wide variety of philosophical schools of thought and readily applying them to occupational therapy. A chapter on romanticism, transcendentalism, and aestheticism draws the readers into works from thinkers such as Goethe, Schiller, and Emerson, reminding the readers that occupational therapy values perception, experience, and spiritual dimensions. A strength of the book is that by introducing so many disparate schools of thought, the book illuminates the vastness of occupational therapy. For example, in two short chapters, readers glean insights from 1) the metaphysics of African ethno-philosophy, which emphasizes that all things and beings are endowed with a creative life force and exist in an interconnected, communal hierarchy; and 2) the analytic philosophy tradition, which seeks truth by using logical processes, reducing concepts to their most basic elements and linking those elements via logic to better understand problems. Taken together, these chapters embolden the occupational therapist to embrace spirituality while being equipped with analytical tools for deducing truths to solve clinical problems. Moreover, chapters such as "Critical Theory: Resources for Questioning and Transforming Everyday Life" and "Intersectionality: Feminist Theorizing in the Pursuit of Justice and Equity" integrate occupational justice within a philosophy of occupational therapy, reminding us of our commitment to continually strive for cultural humility and to advocate and overcome occupational barriers existing in sociocultural, political, and/or historical contexts. While a diverse range of occupational therapy scholars and practitioners contributed to this edited text, the discussion would be strengthened by insights from experts in philosophy of science and philosophical anthropology. Experts such as Lenny Moss can offer important insights into core concepts in occupational therapy such as the constitutive importance throughout human evolution of roles, social contexts, and identity in shaping human experiences. Moss's work is in line with Elizabeth Yerxa's call for occupational scientists to investigate how humans evolved as occupational beings. Philosophy of science perspectives such as those of Susan Oyama or Paul Griffiths on Developmental Systems Theory would bolster understanding and application of well-known models such as Kielhofner's Model of Human Occupation, which is philosophically grounded in Developmental Systems Theory. Finally, key texts from the history and philosophy of medicine such as those of Georges Canguilhem could be beneficial additions to the authors' discussion of how human health and wellness interventions are shaped by evolving societal, political, and other historical factors.
Assessment: This first edition book is one of a kind and there are few books to compare it to. There are edited volumes in philosophy that focus on human health and meaningful activity, such as Arguing About Human Nature, Downes and Machery (Routledge, 2013) and Naturalism and Philosophical Anthropology: Nature, Life, and the Human between Transcendental and Empirical Perspectives Honenberger (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015). While these books contain meaningful philosophical conversations that would be relevant to consider in the field of occupational therapy, they do not draw upon or address the profession directly. By contrast, books within the field of occupational therapy such Cole and Tufano's Applied Theories in Occupational Therapy, 2nd Edition (Slack Incorporated, 2019) or Duncan and Townsend's Foundations for Practice in Occupational Therapy, 6th Edition (Elsevier, 2021) provide some insight into the philosophical foundations of the discipline's main theoretical frameworks but are limited in scope regarding alignment and discussion of philosophical texts. Taff's edited volume achieves both an examination of some of the most influential schools of thought in philosophy while delineating them through the lens of occupational therapy, achieving a rich discussion and diverse array of philosophical principles that should be considered within the field.

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