The Effects of Experiential Learning on Perceived Clinical Reasoning and Self-efficacy of Doctor of Physical Therapy Students

Introduction and Review of the Literature. Experiential learning (EL) is an instructional method that is increasingly being used to teach Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) pediatric content. However, there remains a paucity of research describing student outcomes resulting from EL courses compared with outcomes resulting from traditional instruction-based courses. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the change in perceived clinical reasoning and self-efficacy experienced by DPT students from the same DPT program who completed either high (at least 15 hours) or low (3 hours or less) pediatric EL as a component of their required, semester-long pediatric course. Subjects and Methods. The study was a pretest–posttest comparison group design. Second-year DPT students (n = 58; male: 19 and female: 39) enrolled in fall 2018 (high EL group) and students (n = 53; male: 18 and female: 35) enrolled in fall 2020 (low EL group) completed the Self-Assessment of Clinical Reflection and Reasoning (SACRR) and the Physical Therapy Self-Efficacy Scale (PTSE) during the first and last week of the pediatrics course. Results. A significant interaction effect between EL dosage and time was found for the SACRR (F1,106 = 51.03, P = .000, partial eta squared = 0.33), suggesting that the change in scores was influenced by the dosage of EL. There was no significant interaction effect between EL dosage and time for the PTSE (F1,104 = 1.13, P = .29, partial eta squared = .01). There was a significant main effect for time (F1,104 = 225.61, P = .000, partial eta squared = .68), with both groups showing an improvement in pediatric physical therapy self-efficacy. Discussion and Conclusion. The results of this study suggest that the perceived self-efficacy abilities of students improved with all instructions, but the addition of high EL may enhance traditional instruction methods when used to aid DPT students in the development of self-perceived clinical reasoning and reflection skills.