The Road to Recovery: Predicting Improvement in Physical Therapy Programs

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the three variables of self-efficacy, autonomous motivation, and autonomy support in their prediction of self-perceived improvement in physical therapy programs. Self-determination theory posits that autonomous motivation is the best predictor of accomplishing goals, as this form of motivation is characterized by the internalization of goals such that a person feels a strong sense of pleasure and satisfaction when s/he succeeds. Recent research has also examined the independent effects of self-efficacy and autonomy support in recovery. Self-efficacy refers to an individual’s confidence in his/her ability to succeed. Autonomy support can be defined by how well a health care practitioner involves patients in the goal setting process, as well as explains the steps of recovery to them. Research in the field of rehabilitation has found promising results depicting the importance of both these factors in recovery, with many suggesting that self-efficacy and autonomous motivation predict improvement equally well. These variables have also been found to relate to one another, such that both self-efficacy and autonomy support have been found to predict autonomous motivation in patients involved in various rehabilitation programs. This study therefore intends to further analyze these relationships by examining these variables strictly in the context of physical therapy rehabilitation programs. This knowledge will be useful in understanding what predicts improvement so that these factors can be capitalized on in physical therapy programs so that the maximal improvement can be achieved.