Date of Award

1998

Document Type

Scholarly Project

Degree Name

Master of Physical Therapy (MPT)

Department

Physical Therapy

First Advisor

Renee Mabey

Keywords

Career Choice; Personality

Abstract

The field of physical therapy has had substantial growth this decade and is considered one of the best career choices. One reason for this growth is the implementation of physical therapy in new settings. Physical therapists are no longer restricted to the traditional hospitals and rehabilitation settings as choices. Today, physical therapists can choose to practice in more dynamic settings such as the public school system, sports acceleration and rehabilitation facilities, aqua-therapy, hippotherapy, and industrial facilities. The purpose of this study is to determine if there is a correlation between personality traits and the practice settings for the University of North Dakota graduating class of 1995. In 1993, as junior students in the physical therapy program at the University of North Dakota, this class participated in a Myers-Briggs personality test. For this study, the 48 individuals from that class were sent a questionnaire to determine their current practice setting and years employed in that setting. Thirty-eight returned the survey for a response rate of 86.4%. Due to the small sample size, a nonparametric statistical analysis could not be performed; therefore, only descriptive trends were assessed.

Primary results of the study indicated that the feelers and sensors gravitated toward the hospital setting, while the extrovert gravitated towards the private practice setting. This is similar to other allied health care professionals. Further conclusions could not be drawn due to the small sample size.

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