Critical approaches in physical therapy research: Investigating the symbolic value of walking

Abstract

Research using a critical social science perspective is uncommon in physiotherapy (PT) despite its potential advantages for investigating questions other approaches cannot address. Critical approaches can be used to expose ideas and concepts that are dominant, given, or taken-for-granted in practice in order to reflect on how “things could be otherwise.” The purpose of this paper is to use an example of research examining the symbolic value of walking to outline the key features of critical research and its application to PT. The study drew from Pierre Bourdieu's sociology of practice to illuminate how socially ingrained notions of normality and disability are reflected in rehabilitation practices and affect parents and children with cerebral palsy. Dominant social assumptions about the value of walking are shown to shape individual choices and contribute to parental feelings of angst and doubt, and negative self-identities for children. The example reveals how critical approaches to research can be used to reveal the socio-political dimension of rehabilitation practice and address important research questions that have been largely neglected.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to thank the parents and children who participated in the study, and the following individuals who contributed to the research: Virginia Wright, Darcy Fehlings, Nancy Young, and Patricia McKeever. The study was funded by a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada #820080009.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflict of interest.