Academic Entitlement and Its Potential Educational Consequences: A Scoping Review

Background and Purpose. In 2020, the first and only study to investigate academic entitlement in doctor of physical therapy (DPT) students was published. In the review of literature section of the study, the authors alluded to the premise that academic entitlement seems to be directly related to several educational consequences. The purpose of this scoping review was to determine what educational consequences may result from increased academic entitlement, especially as they relate to DPT students. Methods. A scoping review was conducted to systematically identify what is known about the correlation between academic entitlement and its educational consequences. The scoping review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews checklist. Results. A total of 25 studies were included in the scoping review. For ease of interpretation, the authors organized the statistically significant findings into content areas composed of learning processes related to academic confidence, learning processes related to academic preferences, learning outcomes related to self, and learning outcomes related to others. Discussion and Conclusion. This scoping review determined that several educational consequences may result from increased academic entitlement. A few of the educational factors related to increased academic entitlement also led to adverse personal consequences for both students and their faculty members. Future research should include a review that determines all the possible causes of increased academic entitlement. This information would be beneficial to instructors involved in all levels of education, including faculty members employed in a DPT program.