I’ve had the opportunity to attend some very exciting and illuminating presentations this year on this topic – which have helped to validate my experience and way of thinking and working, as well to shape future professional and personal interactions.
The first was the lecture by public lecture “Facilitating motivation and wellness (research and insights from self-determination theory) by Richard Ryan phD – it can be viewed on the link below
http://www.habs.uq.edu.au/sdt
The ‘take home’ message was that a great body of research has shown that to be motivated/engaged in activities, we all need to experience and will respond to 3 key elements:
- autonomy (support to have choice)
- competence (experiencing success, that ‘I matter’ ‘I can do’)
- relatedness (empathy, social linking)
This was followed up last week at the ‘Translating research into practice” (TRIP) symposium run by the OT section at the Lady Cilento Childrens Hospital Brisbane. Prof. Jenny Ziviani and Dr Anne Poulsen presented on this topic and how to utilise this approach in an underlying manner in all occupational performance. Especially important is goal setting which is cooperative and personally meaningful and the person doesn’t feel controlled. Support to meet the’just right’ challenges, having meaningful choices and being connected with others are other key components.
On reflection, this is true of all facets of life, and an added bonus is that this information gives us a great way to articulate the way we practice and the underlying sound theoretical base. A great boost to keep practicing great occupational therapy!!