Date of Conferral
8-6-2025
Degree
Ph.D.
School
Psychology
Advisor
Patricia Loun
Abstract
Physical therapists and physical therapy students are susceptible to overuse and postural-related injuries related to computer work, lifting, and transferring patients. An effective technique for musculoskeletal dysfunction is instrument assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM) self-care. The purpose of this phenomenological qualitative study was to better understand the lived experiences of physical therapists and physical therapy students who are trained in IASTM self-care. The theoretical foundation for this study was the health belief model (HBM), which proposes that one’s beliefs strongly influence behavior change. In alignment with HBM, research questions related to the participants’ beliefs regarding the perceived threat of not performing IASTM self-care, barriers to performing IASTM self-care, perceived benefits of performing IASTM self-care, and an individual’s self-efficacy to perform IASTM self-care. Data were collected using semi-structured interviews with eight physical therapists and five physical therapy students. The themes that emerged from this research were cues to action, fear, motivation, and self-efficacy. These findings indicate that the internal and external cues, fear of injury or reinjury, motivation toward a future goal, and beliefs about abilities to perform IASTM may drive physical therapists and physical therapy students to adopt the positive health behavior change of IASTM self-care. This information can help in designing environments that encourage physical therapists and physical therapy students to utilize IASTM self-care. A positive social change may occur by patients adopting these behaviors that are modeled by their physical therapists.
Recommended Citation
Bezkor, Edward, "The Experiences of Physical Therapists Trained in Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization for Self-Care" (2025). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 18197.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/18197
