Objective: This study was conducted to investigate the effects of learning styles on the critical thinking dispositions of physiotherapy and rehabilitation students.
Methods: In this study, 344 physiotherapy and rehabilitation students were included, which was planned as a cross-sectional design. The learning styles of students were assessed by the BIG16 Learning Styles Inventory and the critical thinking dispositions were assessed by the Marmara Critical Thinking Dispositions Scale.
Results: The dominant learning style of the students was observed to be visual (14.84 ± 5.93) and there was no significant difference between the auditory learning style scores of the students who did and did not do practical internships (P = .039). Also, the students’ critical thinking dispositions were observed to be high (115.33 ± 11.59), and the level of the open-mindedness of senior students during critical thinking was higher than those of other grades (P = .013). However, no significant difference was found between the critical thinking dispositions of students with different learning styles (P = .693).
Conclusion: It is thought that the critical thinking dispositions of the students of the physiotherapy and rehabilitation department should be raised to a higher level in terms of all sub-dimensions in the undergraduate education process, and the course contents and practical internships of the department should be enriched visually and audibly. In addition, it is suggested that studies on physiotherapy and rehabilitation students consider students’ learning styles and critical thinking dispositions by comparing face-to-face and distance education processes.
Cite this article as: Seçer E, Özer Kaya D. Investigation of the effect of learning styles on critical thinking dispositions of physiotherapy and rehabilitation students. Arch Health Sci Res. 2021;9(2):116-122.