Using Community-Based Research to Explore Common Language and Shared Identity in the Therapeutic Recreation Profession in British Columbia, Canada

Authors

  • Colleen J. Reid Douglas College
  • Anna Landy
  • Paloma Leon

Keywords:

Therapeutic recreation, professional identity, language and values, community-based

Abstract

To date, very little peer-reviewed research on the therapeutic recreation (TR) profession has emerged from British Columbia (BC), Canada. The TR Research Network, a group of researchers and recreation therapists (RTs), adopted a community-based research approach to investigate the current state of TR in BC and to better understand common language and shared identity of diverse RTs in BC. Eighty-four (84) on-line surveys were gathered using Survey Monkey. Closed- and open-ended responses were coded numerically and thematically with the development of descriptive code books. Findings suggest that the profession in BC describes TR as “therapy,” uses clinical language to describe their work, and identifies with both humanistic and individualistic values. Research recommendations include bringing greater consistency to the language of TR, viewing research as the collaborative generation of practice-based evidence, and applying a strengths-based perspective to the ongoing professionalization of the field.

Author Biographies

Colleen J. Reid, Douglas College

Dr. Colleen Reid is on faculty in Therapeutic Recreation at Douglas College and is Adjunct Professor at Simon Fraser University. In her research she focuses on the social determinants of health, physical activity and inactivity, and community-based research. She has published several books and many scholarly journal articles in her teaching and research fields.      

Anna Landy

Anna Landy earned her Bachelor in Therapeutic Recreation from Douglas College and is a member of the BCTR Research Network.

Paloma Leon

Paloma Leon is a Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist. She earned her Bachelor in Therapeutic Recreation from Douglas College and is a member of the BCTR Research Network. In 2011 she received the Rachel Dobek Student Award in recognition of her academic and volunteering achievements.

Downloads

Published

2013-07-01

Issue

Vol. 47 No. 2 (2013)

Section

Qualitative Papers

License

Sagamore Publishing LLC (hereinafter the “Copyright Owner”)

Journal Publishing Copyright Agreement for Authors

PLEASE REVIEW OUR POLICIES AND THE PUBLISHING AGREEMENT, AND INDICATE YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THE TERMS BY CHECKING THE ‘AGREE TO THE TERMS OF THIS COPYRIGHT NOTICE’ CHECKBOX BELOW.

I understand that by submitting an article to Therapeutic Recreation Journal, I am granting the copyright to the article submitted for consideration for publication in Therapeutic Recreation Journal to the Copyright Owner. If after consideration of the Editor of the Therapeutic Recreation Journal, the article is not accepted for publication, all copyright covered under this agreement will be automatically returned to the Author(s).

THE PUBLISHING AGREEMENT

Assignment of Copyright

I hereby assign to the Copyright Owner the copyright in the manuscript I am submitting in this online procedure and any tables, illustrations or other material submitted for publication as part of the manuscript in all forms and media (whether now known or later developed), throughout the world, in all languages, for the full term of copyright, effective when the article is accepted for publication.

Reversion of Rights

Articles may sometimes be accepted for publication but later be rejected in the publication process, even in some cases after public posting in “Articles in Press” form, in which case all rights will revert to the Author.

Retention of Rights for Scholarly Purposes

I understand that I retain or am hereby granted the Retained Rights. The Retained Rights include the right to use the Preprint, Accepted Manuscript, and the Published Journal Article for Personal Use and Internal Institutional Use.

All journal material is under a 12 month embargo. Authors who would like to have their articles available as open access should contact Sagamore-Venture for further information.

In the case of the Accepted Manuscript and the Published Journal Article, the Retained Rights exclude Commercial Use, other than use by the author in a subsequent compilation of the author’s works or to extend the Article to book length form or re-use by the author of portions or excerpts in other works.

Published Journal Article: the author may share a link to the formal publication through the relevant DOI.

Author Representations

  • The Article I have submitted to the journal for review is original, has been written by the stated author(s) and has not been published elsewhere.
  • The Article was not submitted for review to another journal while under review by this journal and will not be submitted to any other journal.
  • The Article contains no libelous or other unlawful statements and does not contain any materials that violate any personal or proprietary rights of any other person or entity.
  • I have obtained written permission from copyright owners for any excerpts from copyrighted works that are included and have credited the sources in the Article.
  • If the Article was prepared jointly with other authors, I have informed the co-author(s) of the terms of this Journal Publishing Agreement and that I am signing on their behalf as their agent, and I am authorized to do so.