Research / Scholarly Agenda
Class of 2024 Research Study Abstracts
In collaboration with our students, the UTRGV Department of Occupational Therapy OTD faculty aims to promote the quality of occupational therapy education, the role of occupational therapy in health services, and the effectiveness of occupational therapy interventions with a focus on the Rio Grande Valley and Mexican American culture. Scholarly priority is given to client-centered, theory-driven, and occupation-based intervention. We are actively engaged in preliminary work that includes quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methodologies studies, pilot feasibility studies of intervention, and single-subject intervention studies. We focus empirical study on the impact of occupation and adaptation on assessment, intervention, and outcomes of health and well-being within the context of the lives of individuals, groups, and populations. We explore functionality in the classroom, clinic, and community and examine the global outreach of Occupational Therapy to improve the quality of life across people.
The program has a history of sharing research conducted by faculty and students at the Texas Occupational Therapy Association conference and American Occupational Therapy conference, AOTA Education summit, Texas Society of Allied Health Professions (TSAHP), and local/regional venues. Student-faculty collaborative research projects that have resulted in presentations at OT professional state and national conferences have ranged from:
- Sleep patterns among Mexican American College students
- The Use of Spirituality Through Hardship Among Hispanics
- Use of Public Restrooms by Individuals with Physical Disabilities: ADA years later
- Hispanic Homeless Veterans in the Rio Grande Valley
- Changes in the Moral Values of Hispanic Veterans
- Caring for A Family Member with Borderline Personality Disorder in Mexican American Families
- Health Care Decision-Making Among Middle Age Men
- Transphobia in the Workplace: An OT Perspective
- Accessibility and Inclusion: The Perspective of Young Adults with Physical Disabilities in Health and Fitness Clubs
- Homelessness among the LGBT population in the Rio Grande Valley
OTD Students Research Study