title: The relationship between approaches to study and academic performance among Australian undergraduate occupational therapy students.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The academic success and degree completion of tertiary students depends on their academic performance (AP), commonly measured by the percentage grades for the units they complete. No research has examined whether occupational therapy students' approaches to study are predictive of their AP. This study investigated whether approaches to study were predictive of the AP among a group of Australian undergraduate occupational therapy students.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 376 undergraduate occupational therapy students completed the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students (ASSIST). Regression analysis was conducted using a range of demographic characteristics and the ASSIST scores as independent variables with students' self-reported by their self-reported mean percentage grade range (as a proxy indicator of their AP) as the dependent variable.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The deep and the strategic approaches to study were not significantly correlated with occupational therapy students' AP. The ASSIST fear of failure subscale of the surface approach to study had a unique contribution to AP, accounting for 1.3% of its total variance. Occupational therapy students' year level of enrolment made a unique contribution to their AP, accounting for 4.2% of the total variance. Age and gender made a unique contribution to AP as well although their impact was small.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Undergraduate occupational therapy students' approaches to study were predictive of their AP to a very limited degree. However, their AP was predicted by a number of demographic variables, including age, gender and year level of enrolment. Further study in this area is recommended.
authors: Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Primary Health Care, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Monash University, Frankston, Victoria, Australia.
authors: Ted
authors: T
authors: Brown
authors: Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Primary Health Care, Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, Monash University, Frankston, Victoria, Australia.
authors: Yuki
authors: Y
authors: Murdolo
mesh_terms: D000073978:Academic Performance / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001315:Australia; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning; D008297:Male; D009788:Occupational Therapy / Q000193:education*; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: academic performance; education; learning; occupational therapy; students