Week 2

Philosophical base of humans

Innate drive and right to engage in meaningful occupations

Occupations provide

Structure

meaning

identity

occupations form

the foundation and goals of OT practice

Ot historical influences

industrialization

women’s rights

WW 1/ 2

economic downturns

legislation

digital age

Enlightenment and moral treatment

structured activity and kindness as healing agents

AOTA

founded March 15, 1917

AOTA name change

1927

Ot founded

1917

founders of OT

•  Eleanor Clarke Slagle (habit training), William Rush Dunton, and George Barton

1920-1939

early practice and identity

1940-1959

•  Medicalization & WWII

  • WWII was a time of immense growth & a=change in OT bc the focus shifted from arts and crafts to science based rehabilitation techniques

1960–1979

• OT theory and specialization

  • In 1962, Mary Reilly challenged the profession to return to its focus on occupation

1980-1999

competing models

2000–Present:

Evidence-based era

Origins:

moral treatment,

the arts & crafts movement,

rehabilitation after WWI/WWII

Shifts:

from holistic roots → medical model → back to occupation‑centered approaches

21st-century trends:

Evidence‑based practice, occupational science, community‑based practice, doctoral education

Occupational science:

• Academic discipline studying humans as occupational beings

  • Occupational science = basic science of OT

Occupational Justice:

Equity and fairness in the right to engage in diverse, meaningful occupations. Practitioners have an ethical responsibility to address injustices caused by poverty, disease, or social discrimination

Occupational Science Focuses on

•  meaning, form, and function of occupation

Occupational science supports

• Supports OT by grounding practice in evidence and scientific study

occupational science emphasizes

occupation is subjective, unique, and context-driven

Elizabeth Yerxa

Instrumental in creating and establishing the discipline of occupational science

Eleanor Clark Slagle

• Most frequently associated w/ the development and use of habit training

• Mary Reilly

• One of the 1st to make the call to return to occupation

Theoretical Treatment approaches

• Earliest: Holistic approaches that drew from moral treatment

• Middle: Biomechanical & rehabilitative approaches focusing on physical function

• Most Recent: Occupation Based approaches

Pre‑1900s:

Enlightenment + moral treatment philosophies

1900–1919:

OT founded (1917); ‘work cure’; arts & crafts movement

1920s–1970s:

rehabilitation post‑war, expansion of medical model and OT schools

1980s–Present:

rise of evidence‑based practice, growth of occupational science, advocacy initiatives