Professional Advocacy in Occupational Therapy: Relating Practitioners' Experiences to the Doing, Being, Becoming, Belonging Framework.

Abstract

Background: Understanding how occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) engage in advocacy and factors influencing their efforts has potential to position practitioners as empowered change agents. While advocacy is essential to occupational therapy (OT) practice, literature reveals inconsistencies in how OTPs conceptualize and implement advocacy. This study explored OTPs' perspectives on the definitions, knowledge, meaning, challenges, and experiences with professional advocacy in OT.

Method: This mixed-methods study used a researcher-designed, 23-question electronic survey to collect data from OTPs across the United States. The survey explored practitioners' advocacy-related perceptions, experiences, and engagement.

Results: Seventy-six OTPs completed the survey, with themes emerging around advocacy as voice, education, action, and community. Practitioners cited insufficient resources and support as barriers but emphasized that advocacy training and professional community involvement could improve engagement. Analysis revealed that advocacy impacts OTPs' roles and identities, supporting the doing-being-becoming-belonging framework's relevance in conceptualizing advocacy within OT.

Conclusions: This study highlighted advocacy's trans¬formative potential across the dimensions of doing, being, becoming, and belonging. Findings suggested encouraging participation in micro- and macro-level initiatives by encouraging increased student involvement, offering advocacy information to all stakeholders, considering small advocacy initiatives, and offering feasible options for support to enhance practitioner participation in the advocacy process.