title: The promise of occupational science: a developmental assessment of an emerging academic discipline.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In the late 1980's, occupational science was introduced as a basic discipline that would provide a foundation for occupational therapy. As occupational science grows and develops, some question its relationship to occupational therapy and criticize the direction and extent of its growth and development.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study was designed to describe and critically analyze the growth and development of occupational science and characterize how this has shaped its current status and relationship to occupational therapy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Using a mixed methods design, 54 occupational science documents published in the years 1990 and 2000 were critically analyzed to describe changes in the discipline between two points in time. Data describing a range of variables related to authorship, publication source, stated goals for occupational science and type of research were collected.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Descriptive statistics, themes and future directions are presented and discussed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Through the support of a discipline that is dedicated to the pursuit of a full understanding of occupation, occupational therapy will help to create a new and complex body of knowledge concerning occupation. However, occupational therapy must continue to make decisions about how knowledge produced within occupational science and other disciplines can be best used in practice.
authors.affiliation: Occupational Therapy Program, University of Toronto, Ontario. molke_d@cotarehab.ca
authors.forename: Daniel K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Molke
authors.forename: Deborah
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Laliberte-Rudman
authors.forename: Helene J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Polatajko
mesh_terms: D001319:Authorship; D005544:Forecasting; D006802:Human Activities; D006801:Humans; D009788:Occupational Therapy / Q000145:classification* / Q000458:organization & administration; D009790:Occupations; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D010684:Philosophy; D011643:Publishing; D012106:Research; D012935:Social Justice; D013038:Specialization; D009626:Terminology as Topic