Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Date
2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Instruction & Curriculum Leadership
Committee Chair
Andrew Tawfik
Committee Member
Craig Shepherd
Committee Member
Jacque Bradford
Committee Member
Yeonji Jung
Abstract
Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) students often encounter substantial challenges when transitioning from classroom-based didactic instruction to the dynamic and unpredictable environment of clinical practice. Among the most commonly cited difficulties are communication, critical thinking, patient education, and adaptability – skills that are not easily cultivated through traditional lecture-based learning alone. This conventional mode of instruction frequently lacks the experiential depth needed to adequately prepare DPT students for the multifaceted demands of real-world patient care. As a response to these limitations, Simulation-Based Learning Education (SBLE) has gained traction as an innovative and effective pedagogical approach. SBLE allows students to immerse themselves in both structured and ill-structured clinical scenarios, promoting hands-on engagement and deeper learning (Alharbi et al., 2024). This study specifically investigates the impact of SBLE on enhancing student self-efficacy and the capacity to learn from failure, framed within the theoretical model of Case-Based Reasoning (CBR). CBR suggests that learners build expertise by retrieving previous cases, applying them to new situations, refining their strategies through reflection, and retaining these improved approaches for future clinical decision-making (Tawfik & Kolodner, 2016). Within this framework, failure is not merely an obstacle but a vital part of the learning process. By encountering and analyzing mistakes or failure in a controlled simulation environment, students can refine their clinical reasoning, enhance problem-solving skills, and build resilience-qualities essential for professional growth and success. Self-efficacy, a critical factor in determining student performance and persistence, is strengthened through repeated simulation experiences that offer immediate feedback, guided reflection, and the opportunity to iteratively improve. While the benefits of SBLE are increasingly acknowledged in physical therapy education, there remains a need for deeper exploration into how failure within these simulation influences student confidence, clinical competence, and long-term retention of knowledge. This research aims to fill the gap by exploring the integration of failure as a deliberate component of SBLE and identifying best practices for maximizing its educational value for DPT students. Ultimately, the findings seek to contribute to the development of more effective, evidence-based simulation curricula that better prepare DPT students to become adaptable, confident, and competent healthcare professionals capable of navigating complex clinical environments.
Library Comment
Dissertation or thesis originally submitted to ProQuest.
Notes
Open access
Recommended Citation
Clardy, Carlos, "Enhancing Self-Efficacy and Learning from Failure in Doctor of Physical Therapy Students: A Case-Based Reasoning Approach in Simulation-Based Learning" (2025). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 3812.
https://digitalcommons.memphis.edu/etd/3812
Comments
Data is provided by the student.