Abstract
[Purpose] To clarify whether the focuses of goal-setting for individual clients in physical therapy vary depending on therapists’ clinical experience, this study compared such focuses between students of a physical therapist training school (student PTs) and professional physical therapists (professional PTs). [Subjects and Methods] A total of 50 professional PTs (mean length of clinical experience: 3.7 ± 2.1 years), who worked in facilities belonging to the study university, and 54 student PTs in their third or fourth year at the Department of Physical Therapy of the same university, who consented to cooperate with the study, were involved. [Results] The professional and student PTs tended to attach importance to the ‘previous lives’ and ‘activities’ of patients, respectively, when setting goals for them. [Conclusion] The focuses of goal-setting varied between the professional and student PTs. There were no differences related to the school year, suggesting that such a variation was associated with clinical experience as a PT.
