The assessment of physiotherapy practice is a robust measure of entry-level physiotherapy standards: Reliability and validity evidence from a large, representative sample.

Reubenson, A; Ng, L; Lawton, V; Nahon, I; Terry, R; Baldwin, C; Blackford, J; Bond, A; Corrigan, R; Dalton, M; Dario, AB; Donovan, M; Dunwoodie, R; Dwyer, GM; Forbes, R; Francis-Cracknell, A; Gill, J; Hams, A; Jones, A; Jones, T; Judd, B; Kennedy, E; Morgan, P; Palmer, T; Peiris, C; Taylor, C; Virtue, D; Zischke, C; Gucciardi, DF; Physiotherapy Clinical Education Research Collaborative (PCERC),

The assessment of physiotherapy practice is a robust measure of entry-level physiotherapy standards: Reliability and validity evidence from a large, representative sample.

Reubenson, A Ng, L Lawton, V Nahon, I Terry, R Baldwin, C Blackford, J Bond, A Corrigan, R Dalton, M Dario, AB Donovan, M Dunwoodie, R Dwyer, GM Forbes, R Francis-Cracknell, A Gill, J Hams, A Jones, A Jones, T Judd, B Kennedy, E Morgan, P Palmer, T Peiris, C Taylor, C Virtue, D Zischke, C Gucciardi, DF Physiotherapy Clinical Education Research Collaborative (PCERC),

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Publisher:: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: PLoS One, 2025, 20, (4), pp. e0321397
Issue Date:: 2025

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Reubenson, A
dc.contributor.author	Ng, L
dc.contributor.author	Lawton, V
dc.contributor.author	Nahon, I
dc.contributor.author	Terry, R
dc.contributor.author	Baldwin, C
dc.contributor.author	Blackford, J
dc.contributor.author	Bond, A
dc.contributor.author	Corrigan, R
dc.contributor.author	Dalton, M
dc.contributor.author	Dario, AB
dc.contributor.author	Donovan, M
dc.contributor.author	Dunwoodie, R
dc.contributor.author	Dwyer, GM
dc.contributor.author	Forbes, R
dc.contributor.author	Francis-Cracknell, A
dc.contributor.author	Gill, J
dc.contributor.author	Hams, A
dc.contributor.author	Jones, A
dc.contributor.author	Jones, T
dc.contributor.author	Judd, B
dc.contributor.author	Kennedy, E
dc.contributor.author	Morgan, P
dc.contributor.author	Palmer, T
dc.contributor.author	Peiris, C
dc.contributor.author	Taylor, C
dc.contributor.author	Virtue, D
dc.contributor.author	Zischke, C
dc.contributor.author	Gucciardi, DF
dc.contributor.author	Physiotherapy Clinical Education Research Collaborative (PCERC),
dc.contributor.editor	Alshehri, MA
dc.date.accessioned	2026-03-13T04:39:23Z
dc.date.available	2025-03-05
dc.date.available	2026-03-13T04:39:23Z
dc.date.issued	2025
dc.identifier.citation	PLoS One, 2025, 20, (4), pp. e0321397
dc.identifier.issn	1932-6203
dc.identifier.issn	1932-6203
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/194329
dc.description.abstract	The Assessment of Physiotherapy Practice (APP) is a 20-item assessment instrument used to assess entry-level physiotherapy practice in Australia, New Zealand and other international locations. Initial APP reliability and validity evidence supported a unidimensional or single latent factor as the best representation of entry-level physiotherapy practice performance. However, there remains inconsistency in how the APP is interpreted and operationalised across Australian and New Zealand universities offering entry-level physiotherapy programs. In essence, the presumption that the psychometric integrity of the APP generalises across people, time, and contexts remains largely untested. This multi-site, archival replication study utilised APP assessment data from 8,979 clinical placement assessments, across 19 Australian and New Zealand universities, graduating entry-level physiotherapy students (n=1865) in 2019. Structural representation of APP scores were examined via confirmatory factor analysis and penalised structural equation models. Factor analyses indicated a 2-factor representation, with four items (1-4) for the professional dimension and 16 items (5-20) for the clinical dimension, is the best approximation of entry-level physiotherapy performance. Measurement invariance analyses supported the robustness of this 2-factor representation over time and across diverse practice areas in both penultimate and final years of study. The findings provide strong evidence for the psychometric integrity of the APP, and the 2-factor alternative interpretation and operationalisation is recommended. To meet entry-level standards students should be assessed as competent across both professional and clinical dimensions of physiotherapy practice.
dc.format	Electronic-eCollection
dc.language	eng
dc.publisher	Public Library of Science (PLoS)
dc.relation.ispartof	PLoS One
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1371/journal.pone.0321397
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject.classification	General Science & Technology
dc.subject.mesh	Humans
dc.subject.mesh	Australia
dc.subject.mesh	New Zealand
dc.subject.mesh	Reproducibility of Results
dc.subject.mesh	Physical Therapy Modalities
dc.subject.mesh	Male
dc.subject.mesh	Female
dc.subject.mesh	Psychometrics
dc.subject.mesh	Adult
dc.subject.mesh	Physical Therapists
dc.subject.mesh	Surveys and Questionnaires
dc.subject.mesh	Universities
dc.subject.mesh	Physical Therapy Specialty
dc.subject.mesh	Factor Analysis, Statistical
dc.subject.mesh	Young Adult
dc.subject.mesh	Humans
dc.subject.mesh	Factor Analysis, Statistical
dc.subject.mesh	Reproducibility of Results
dc.subject.mesh	Psychometrics
dc.subject.mesh	Universities
dc.subject.mesh	Adult
dc.subject.mesh	Australia
dc.subject.mesh	New Zealand
dc.subject.mesh	Female
dc.subject.mesh	Male
dc.subject.mesh	Physical Therapy Modalities
dc.subject.mesh	Young Adult
dc.subject.mesh	Physical Therapy Specialty
dc.subject.mesh	Physical Therapists
dc.subject.mesh	Surveys and Questionnaires
dc.subject.mesh	Humans
dc.subject.mesh	Australia
dc.subject.mesh	New Zealand
dc.subject.mesh	Reproducibility of Results
dc.subject.mesh	Physical Therapy Modalities
dc.subject.mesh	Male
dc.subject.mesh	Female
dc.subject.mesh	Psychometrics
dc.subject.mesh	Adult
dc.subject.mesh	Physical Therapists
dc.subject.mesh	Surveys and Questionnaires
dc.subject.mesh	Universities
dc.subject.mesh	Physical Therapy Specialty
dc.subject.mesh	Factor Analysis, Statistical
dc.subject.mesh	Young Adult
dc.title	The assessment of physiotherapy practice is a robust measure of entry-level physiotherapy standards: Reliability and validity evidence from a large, representative sample.
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	20
utslib.location.activity	United States
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2026-03-13T04:39:21Z
pubs.issue	4
pubs.publication-status	Published online
pubs.volume	20
utslib.citation.issue	4

Abstract:

The Assessment of Physiotherapy Practice (APP) is a 20-item assessment instrument used to assess entry-level physiotherapy practice in Australia, New Zealand and other international locations. Initial APP reliability and validity evidence supported a unidimensional or single latent factor as the best representation of entry-level physiotherapy practice performance. However, there remains inconsistency in how the APP is interpreted and operationalised across Australian and New Zealand universities offering entry-level physiotherapy programs. In essence, the presumption that the psychometric integrity of the APP generalises across people, time, and contexts remains largely untested. This multi-site, archival replication study utilised APP assessment data from 8,979 clinical placement assessments, across 19 Australian and New Zealand universities, graduating entry-level physiotherapy students (n=1865) in 2019. Structural representation of APP scores were examined via confirmatory factor analysis and penalised structural equation models. Factor analyses indicated a 2-factor representation, with four items (1-4) for the professional dimension and 16 items (5-20) for the clinical dimension, is the best approximation of entry-level physiotherapy performance. Measurement invariance analyses supported the robustness of this 2-factor representation over time and across diverse practice areas in both penultimate and final years of study. The findings provide strong evidence for the psychometric integrity of the APP, and the 2-factor alternative interpretation and operationalisation is recommended. To meet entry-level standards students should be assessed as competent across both professional and clinical dimensions of physiotherapy practice.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/194329