Abstract:
This study set out to investigate the relationship between individual values of final year
occupational therapy students at seven universities as well as the eventual performance of each
student during the final evaluation. Using a quantitative research method, a total of 154 final year
students were assessed in the early part of their final year by means of the Value Scale - a
standardised instrument for the multicultural population in South Africa. The final grade each
student obtained was reflected by the mean of the grades obtained in all the subjects for that
study year. This grade reflected both theoretical knowledge and the practical application of such
knowledge. No positive correlations were found between the six second-order value factors and
their achievement percentages for the sample as a whole. However, a negative correlation was
obtained in terms of autonomous lifestyle and the students’ levels of achievement (r= -0,169; p -
0,036) for the sample as a whole. This result indicates that the higher the students rated
independence of action within their work, as well as creativity, diversity, change of activities and
risk incurred in projects proposed, the lower their average grades tended to be. In a profession
that sets a high value on creativity and independence, it is specifically those students possessing
these values who seem to flounder. It is recommended that the autonomy and creativity of
occupational therapy students in the clinical field be researched by means of a qualitative method
since the declared values by means of self-report measures in quantitative research may not
reveal a student’s operational value system.
