Physical Therapy education has been challenged to prepare students to meet the increasing demands upon and changing needs of physical therapy practice in the evolving health delivery system. Today's practitioner needs strong interpersonal and collaborative skills for effective communication with patients, families, third party payers, community and other members of the health care team. The characteristics of problem-based learning (PBL) curricula appeared to offer greater potential for students to develop communication skills as compared to traditional curricula. Therefore, this study used available measures of communication apprehension and clinical performance of communication related behaviors to compare students educated in PBL curricula with students from traditional educational models.
Fein, B. D. (2003). Communication apprehension and interpersonal skills in physical therapy students : A comparative study of problem-based learning and traditional curricula. [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. University of Bridgeport.
Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education, the School of Education, University of Bridgeport.