Physical Therapists’ Ethical and Moral Sensitivity: A STROBE-Compliant Cross-Sectional Study with a Special Focus on Gender Differences

Abstract

(1) Background: Healthcare professionals´ clinical practice, their care of patients and the clinical decision-making process may be influenced by ethical and moral sensitivity. However, such outcomes have been scarcely studied in physical therapists. This study aimed to explore ethical sensitivity and moral sensitivity in practicing physical therapists, and to compare both variables by gender. (2) Methods: Cross-sectional study. 75 physical therapists (58.7% women; average age = 34.56 (8.68) years) were asked to fill in questionnaires measuring ethical sensitivity (Ethical Sensitivity Scale Questionnaire) and moral sensitivity (Revised-Moral Sensitivity Questionnaire). (3) Results: The sample showed high ethical sensitivity (116.14 ± 15.87 over 140) and high moral sensitivity (40.58 ± 5.36 over 54). When comparing by gender, women reported significantly higher ethical sensitivity than men (p = 0.043), as well as higher scores in the following dimensions: Caring by connecting with others (p = 0.012) and Working with interpersonal and group differences (p = 0.028). However, no differences were found in moral sensitivity (p = 0.243). (4) Conclusion: Physical therapists showed high levels of ethical and moral sensitivity, whilst women reported higher ethical sensitivity than men. Understanding physical therapists´ ethical and moral sensitivity is essential to design and implement integrated education programs directed to improve the quality of care of patients in their daily clinical practice.

Exploring levels of empathy and assertiveness in final year physiotherapy students during clinical placements

“…In addition, women have a more noteworthy natural ability to feel compassion and discomfort for others 79 . This is contradicted in the study by Moreno Segura et al 60 . These authors argue that physiotherapists have an acceptable level of ethical and moral sensitivity.…”

“…Marqués-Sule et al 59 argue that the teaching of ethics should be established in each year of the university degree, even if it is transversal in each subject. Ethics is a fundamental pillar in the clinical training of physiotherapy students, and as Moreno-Segura et al 60 say, the human sensitivity of physiotherapy students should be explored to shape the design of ethics training in the physiotherapy curriculum, as ethics training undoubtedly also serves to train future professionals in patient safety 61 . Aguilar-Rodríguez et al 59 reinforce the idea of the importance of ethics training for future physiotherapists, as it will enable them to identify situations in clinical practice in which bioethical principles may be violated in patient care during their clinical training.…”

Ethical Reasoning at Work: A Cross-Country Comparison of Gender and Age Differences

“…While men more often use justice-oriented principled reasoning, as described by Kohlberg in the postconventional phase, women more often use a form of reasoning based on care and relationships (cf. Moreno-Segura et al 2023). Gilligan proposed that Kohlberg's theory did not adequately describe women's moral development because it devalued the care voice.…”

Attitude of Romanian Medical Students and Doctors toward Business Ethics: Analyzing the Influence of Sex, Age, and Ethics Education

“…Thus, we find research that did not identify any sex differences among university students in terms of ethical responses [ 45 ]. Another study on healthcare professionals’ clinical practice indicates no differences in moral sensitivity between women and men; in terms of ethical sensitivity, women reported significantly higher ethical sensitivity than men [ 46 ]. However, most studies highlight differences between women and men in terms of concern for ethical issues in general [ 47 ], with women having a higher business ethics than male students [ 48 , 49 , 50 ].…”