Qualitalive research in occupational therapy: a panoramic view of the field

Abstract

This paper presents an overview of the research employing qualitative approaches in occupational lherapy, during lhe last decade. A literature review in this inatter was conducted searching four periodicals: American Journal of Occupational Therapy, Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy, Occupational Therapy International and Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Results are presented under five main domains of research: 1) Conceptual and methodological aspects of qualitative research in occupational therapy; 2) Papers related to the AOTA/AOTF Clinical Reasoning Study; 3) Ethnographies of specific clinical populations; 4) Inquiries conducted with occupational therapy students, and 5) Studies of professional values and role delineation. The paper aims at introducing the main trends in the field and to contribute with questions concerning the conceptual framework, practical issues, applications and limitations of the qualitative approach for occupational therapy studies in Brazil.