Occupational Therapy Interventions for Adolescents: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Aim and Background: Occupations are everyday activities that help occupy our time and provide us with a sense of purpose in life. Adolescence is a unique stage of life when individuals experience occupational change that assists with preparation for adulthood. Participation in occupations is linked to health and wellbeing. Existing literature on occupational participation appears to combine adolescents’ and children’s experiences. Due to the unique nature of adolescence and an increased focus on service development and re-design for all age groups in Australia since the implementation of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, this scoping review sought to explore Occupational Therapy interventions that promote adolescents’ participation in everyday occupations. Design and Methods: A systematic search of eight databases for peer reviewed papers published between 2008 and 2018 was conducted. The PRISMA guidelines were used to guide the review processes. Study selection criteria focussed
 
 on Occupational Therapy interventions promoting participation in everyday occupations for adolescents (between 10 to 19 years of age). The data was charted and synthesised to identify key features of the interventions. Results: The 26 included studies revealed various intervention types and adolescent groups. The majority of the interventions targeted adolescents with physical disabilities and autism spectrum disorder. Many studies focussed on promoting functional independence in work, personal care, social participation and health management. Features of interventions include collaborative (with the adolescent and family) intervention goal setting and evaluation processes, as well as the use of technology. The majority of the papers reported positive outcomes, however mixed results were also identified. The findings provide guidance for adolescent service development and re-design by identifying the areas of occupation and features of programs, documented in Occupational Therapy-specific literature. Future reviews can extend our understanding further by incorporating by including publications that focus on assessment and other roles of Occupational Therapists.
 Keywords: participation, occupation, Occupational Therapy, adolescents

Preliminary mixed‐methods investigation: Impact and acceptability of a combined life skills and adventure therapy program for adolescents

“…These guidelines also suggest therapists should increase focus on supporting transition into adulthood through interventions targeted towards client‐centred goals. Accordingly, much of the literature on occupational therapy intervention with adolescents focuses on participation in one relevant occupation for this population at a time (Clarkson et al, 2021).…”

“…Although occupational therapists work with transition‐age youth to develop meaningful goals, often focused on life skills development, research in this area is limited (Clarkson et al, 2021; Wiart, 2015). The research available suggests that engaging youth in personal goal setting for life skill development can support positive changes.…”

“…Life skills intervention involves the use of functional activities, including ADLs and IADLs (for example, managing a routine, personal hygiene, and social skills). In their scoping review, Clarkson et al (2021) found that life skills intervention for adolescents has been primarily studied in the school context, with only four studies investigating intervention in a community‐based setting.…”

A atuação da Terapia Ocupacional na promoção de saúde com adolescentes: um protocolo de revisão de escopo

“…Destaca-se que, em busca realizada em outubro de 2022 nas bases PUBMED e LILACS, não foram encontradas publicações de estudos de revisão de literatura recentes semelhantes à proposta apresentada neste texto. Os estudos encontrados, como as revisões elaboradas por Albuquerque e Farias (2022), Alsina-Santana e Zango-Martin (2022), Arbesman;, Attard et al (2021), Bolt et al (2019), Clarkson, et al, (2021) Os protocolos de revisão de escopo são documentos que devem ser elaborados antes da realização da revisão, em que deve estar sistematizado o planejamento para a condução e a posterior divulgação dos resultados, de forma congruente ao referencial metodológico adotado pelos pesquisadores (Peters et al, 2022). A publicação de protocolos dos estudos de revisão de escopo é recomendada pelos guias de referência metodológica enquanto uma boa prática em pesquisa, por possibilitar a revisão por pares dos caminhos a serem trilhados no desenvolvimento do estudo, por evitar vieses na condução e por prevenir a duplicação com outras revisões existentes (Peters et al, 2022).…”