Mexican American Intergenerational Research: Transformative Model of Occupational Therapy
Maritza Montiel Tafur, Yvonne de la Torre Montiel, Miguel Montiel

TL;DR
This paper explores the lived experiences of Mexican American women through interviews, leading to a new model in occupational therapy that emphasizes cultural values and community health.
Contribution
The paper introduces the Transformative Model of Occupational Therapy, a decolonized framework linking individual health to community and global well-being.
Findings
Environmental barriers like patriarchy and discrimination hinder occupational participation.
Acts of resistance through everyday living facilitate occupational participation.
The Transformative Model centers occupations like play and education as contributors to the common good.
Abstract
Thirty-seven interviews of Mexican American women who crossed the border into the United States during the era of the Mexican Revolution of 1910 were analyzed using constructivist grounded theory methods. The intent is to expand the occupational therapy profession's occupational consciousness and cultivate cultural humility. Four themes emerged from the data: suffering, work, yearning for an education, and compassion for others. The findings suggest that environmental barriers such as hierarchy (patriarchy and discrimination) and physical barriers (limited access to built environments, lack of nonexploitative work opportunities, and hostile educational institutions) prevented occupational participation. Small acts of resistance through everyday living (finding joy, playing, self-sufficiency, and community organizing) were identified as facilitators of occupational participation. The…
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Taxonomy
TopicsOccupational Therapy Practice and Research · Global Health Workforce Issues
