USC
University of Southern California
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Courses of Instruction

Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy (OT)

The terms indicated are expected but are not guaranteed. For the courses offered during any given term, consult the Schedule of Classes.

105g Culture, Medicine and Politics (4, Fa) (Enroll in ANTH 105g)

220 Introduction to Occupational Therapy (2, FaSp) Exploration of philosophy and practice of occupational therapy (helping the disabled regain independence), including visits to hospitals; designed for students considering a health career.

250 Introduction to Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy (4) Introduction to concept of occupation and overview of human drive for meaningful activity; impact of occupations on health and well-being; analysis of personal occupational patterns; selected therapeutic applications.

260 Human Functional Anatomy for the Occupational Therapist (3, Sm) An anatomical survey of the human musculoskeletal, nervous, cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive and urinary system. Recommended preparation: introductory undergraduate course in biology.

261 Human Physiology for Occupational Therapists (3, FaSp) Provides a general overview of human physiology with special emphasis on physiologic systems supporting internal homeostatic mechanisms and human motion applicable for occupational therapists. Open only to OT majors. Recommended preparation: undergraduate biology course.

300 Occupational Expressions of Diverse Identities and Lifestyles (4) Exploration of the diverse ways occupational practices become central to identity, reify standard social ideologies, and are manipulated to redress conventional standards.

305m Culture, Medicine and Politics (4, FaSp) Survey of the impact of public institutions, the private sector, and cultural practices on health and the delivery of health care in the United States.

310x Creativity Workshop (2, FaSpSm) Theories and practice of the creative process in varied media, genres and occupations. Explores creativity in the arts, sciences, professions, evolution, daily life, and culture.

320 The Nature of Human Occupation: Form, Function, and Meaning (4) The complex nature of human occupation is covered from an interdisciplinary perspective. Emphasis is on how occupation contributes to human experience in a lived world.

325 The Biosocial Context of Human Occupation (4) Hormonal and contextual (social, physical, and temporal) correlates of human occupations and psychological states; collection and interpretation of field data using innovative research methods.

330 Perspectives on the Daily Life of Families (4) Examines family structures and processes, the occupational dimensions of families, and the meanings embedded in the acts of daily life of contemporary families.

350 Disability, Occupations, and the Health Care System (4) Exploration of the ways in which able-bodyism, sexism, racism, classism and homophobia contribute to occupational opportunities or barriers and weave their way into health care.

360 Creating the Self through Narrative: Acts of Life Story Production (4) Analysis of life stories, life histories, and testimonies in social interactions, texts, and films. Life stories are an occupation to re-create the "Self" in response to conflict and change.

375 The Narrative Structure of Social Action: Narrative, Healing and Occupation (4) Narrative as guide and structure of practical action. Special emphasis on chronic illness and disability and narrative structure of clinical interactions.

390 Special Problems (1-4) Supervised, individual studies. No more than one registration permitted. Enrollment by petition only.

405 Occupational Therapy Skills Theory I (4, FaSm) Creative, manual, recreational, and self-care skills critical to occupational role function. Teaching and practice in laboratory and clinical settings. Lecture, laboratory, and clinic. Open only to OT majors.

415 Medical Lectures (4, Fa) Human pathology; classification and terminology, mechanisms of disease, description of the essentials of diseases of clinical significance. Lectures and clinical presentations by Medical School faculty. Open to OT majors; others by departmental approval.

420 Developmental Concepts and Occupation (4, Fa) Biopsychosocial approach to human development; integration and effect upon acquisition of skills for the occupational role. Supervised experience in clinical observation and testing. Open only to OT majors.

440 Foundations of Occupation/Kinesiology (2, SpSm) Application of basic neuromusculo-skeletal function to the performance of daily living tasks and activities; emphasis on integration of neurological knowledge with understanding of neuromuscular dysfunction. Open only to OT majors.

441 Foundations of Occupation/Neurology (2, SpSm) Application of basic neural function to the performance of daily living tasks and activities; emphasis on integration of neurological knowledge with understanding of neuromuscular dysfunction. Open only to OT majors.

452 Occupational Therapy, Theory and Practice/Physical Disabilities (4, Fa) History, philosophy, and interpretation of occupational therapy practice in physical disabilities. Study of behavior as it relates to human competency and family adaptation, occupational choice, and satisfaction. Open only to OT majors.

453 Occupational Therapy, Theory and Practice/Psychosocial Dysfunction (4, Fa) History, philosophy, and interpretation of occupational therapy practice in psychosocial dysfunction. Study of psychosocial function as it relates to core themes of intrinsic motivation, decision making, roles, temporal adaptation, skills and the environment. Open only to OT majors.

463 Occupational Therapy Skills Theory II (2, Fa) Application of occupational therapy skills to creative problem solution and task analysis in the understanding of occupation. Open only to OT majors.

464 Occupational Therapy Skills Theory III (4, Sp) Analysis of occupational therapy skills and activities in the understanding of the individual's participation in occupation. Particular emphasis will be given to the occupational tasks of supervision; and the design, management and marketing of occupational therapy services. Open only to OT majors.

465 Advanced Occupational Therapy Theory -- Psychosocial (3, Sp) Selected cases from occupational therapy practice in the area of psychosocial dysfunction; special emphasis on prevention, diagnosis, treatment, management, consultation, communication, and use of community resources. Open only to OT majors. Prerequisite: OT 405, OT 415, OT 420, OT 463.

466 Advanced Occupational Therapy Theory -- Physical Dysfunction (3, Sp) Selected cases from occupational therapy practice in the area of physical dysfunction; with emphasis on prevention, diagnosis, treatment, management, consultation, communication, and use of community resources. Open only to OT majors. Prerequisite: OT 405, OT 415, OT 420, OT 463.

467 Advanced Occupational Therapy Theory -- Pediatrics (3, Sp) Selected cases from occupational therapy practice with children; prevention, diagnosis, treatment, management, consultation, communication, and use of community resources in practice with children. Open only to OT majors. Prerequisite: OT 405, OT 415, OT 420, OT 463.

468 Advanced Occupational Therapy Theory -- Adolescence, Adulthood, and Aging (3, Sp) Selected cases from occupational therapy practice with adolescents, adults and aged persons; with emphasis on prevention, diagnosis, treatment, management, consultation, communication, and use of community resources with these age-related groups. Open only to OT majors. Prerequisite: OT 405, OT 415, OT 420, OT 463.

485 Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy (2, Sp) Implications for the direction of occupational therapy practice based on the developing knowledge base in occupational science. Open only to OT majors.

486 Clinical Internship with Seminar (1-2, max 6, FaSpSm) Clinical internship to qualify for professional certification. Seminar to integrate theory with application of treatment principles for various populations. Graded CR/NC. Open only to OT majors. Prerequisite: completion of all OT major academic requirements.

490x Directed Research (2-8, max 8, FaSp) Individual research and readings. Not available for graduate credit. Prerequisite: departmental approval. Open only to OT majors.

499 Special Topics (2-4, max 8, FaSpSm) Course content to be selected in occupational therapy and occupational science. Prerequisite: departmental approval.

500abc Clinical Problems in Occupational Therapy (2-4, 2-4, 2-4, FaSpSm) Specific applications of occupational therapy practice in varied clinical/health settings. Seminar to integrate theory with application of intervention principles for various populations. Graded CR/NC.

505 Seminar in Occupational Therapy (2-4) Occupational therapy and the health care system. Open only to OT majors.

506 History of Occupational Therapy Practice (4, Fa) Critical historical review of theories and practices in occupational therapy; impact of projection of future models for practice; strategies for implementing change; historical method. Open only to OT majors.

507 Theory in a Practice Profession (4, Sp) Development of models and theories in a practice discipline through scientific thought; criteria for assessing theories; general systems theory. Open only to OT majors.

510 Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis of Occupational Data (4, Sp) Data analysis for the study of occupational patterns and occupation in therapy. Survey of methods used for statistical analysis and for analysis of qualitative methods.

550 Occupational Behavior Model (2-4, Sp) Treatment model applicable to all age and disability categories; holistic conceptualization including family and community systems, evaluation tools, and treatment approach; case method. Open only to OT majors.

555 Seminar: Implementation of the Advocacy Model (2-4, Sp) The patient as decision-maker in chronic care; competency development through activities of daily living, leisure skills, time organization and life goal planning; action research. Open only to OT majors.

560 Contemporary Issues in School-Based Practice (4, FaSp) Current issues in school-based occupational therapy evaluation, ongoing assessment and intervention. Topics include successful collaboration in inclusive classrooms and on IFSP and IEP teams. Open only to OT majors. Graded CR/NC.

564 Sensory Integration (4, FaSp) Comprehensive overview of sensory integration theory and basic intervention principles. A case-based approach will facilitate the integration of sensory integration, evidence-based practice and occupational science. Open only to OT majors. Graded CR/NC.

572 Ergonomics (4, FaSp) Focus on the effects of physical design in the workplace on users' injury rate, behavior, performance and stress levels. Intervention for repetitive motion included. Open only to OT majors. Graded CR/NC.

574 Enhancing Motor Control for Occupation (4, FaSp) Laboratory examining approaches to assessment and remediation of motor control following upper motor neuron lesions. An occupation-based approach to Neurodevelopmental Treatment (NDT) will be emphasized. Open only to OT majors. Graded CR/NC.

583 Lifestyle Redesign (4, FaSp) Seminar examining occupations and lifestyle redesign as a contribution to health and well-being. Topics include therapeutic process, needs assessment, design and marketing of lifestyle modules. Open only to OT majors. Graded CR/NC.

588 Research Methods (4, Fa) Descriptive, comparative, and evaluative research methods; research tools and procedures; application of general systems theory. Open only to OT majors.

590 Directed Research (1-12, FaSpSm) Research leading to the master's degree. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the department. Graded CR/NC. Open only to OT majors.

594abz Master's Thesis (2-2-0, FaSp) Credit on acceptance of thesis. Graded IP/CR/NC. Open only to OT majors.

599 Special Topics (2-4, max 8, FaSpSm) Recent developments in occupational therapy and occupational science. Prerequisite: departmental approval.

604 Temporal Adaptation: Organization and Use of Time (4, 2 years, Fa) Environmental, biological, psychological and socio-cultural influences on perceptions of and utilization of time. Implications for human adaptation.

610 Sensory Integrative Dysfunction (4, FaSpSm) Differential evaluation of sensory integrative dysfunction; theory and procedure for enhancing the processing of sensory data by children with learning and behavior disorders. Prerequisite: admission by advance application and instructor's approval only; must be certified as an occupational or physical therapist.

612 Information Processing and Occupation (4, 2 years, Fa) Phylogenesis and ontogenesis of human information processing capacity enabling engagement in occupation; components and contributions to adaptation and coping.

650 Development of Adaptive Skills (4, Fa) Critical analysis of occupation as means and product of human adaptation. Adaptive skill development from traditional and occupational science approaches. Research methods and results.

651 Adaptation and Disability (4, Sp) Social and cultural adaptation to disabilities and stigmatized medical conditions through anthropological studies of groups and individuals. Training in ethnographic methods with such populations. (Duplicates credit in former OT 551.)

653 Play and Occupation (4, 2 years, Sp) Major conceptual, theoretical, and empirical studies of play; development and organization of play in relation to occupation; research on play as occupation. (Duplicates credit in former OT 553.)

655 Work and Leisure (4, Sp) Ontogenesis and phylogenesis of work and leisure. Systems view of person/environmental interactions affecting competence and satisfaction with activity. Occupation and the need for mastery.

660abcd Research Practicum in Occupation (1-1-1-1, FaSp) Supervised research in current problems and issues in occupation. Graded CR/NC. Open only to OT majors.

686 Residency (6 or 12, max 24, FaSpSm) Residency involving development, administration, evaluation, or policy formulation for occupation-centered programs in clinical or community settings. Development of portfolio for professional doctorate. Open to OT majors only. Graded CR/NC.

790 Research (1-12) Research leading to the doctorate. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the department. Graded CR/NC. Open only to OT majors.

794abcdz Doctoral Dissertation (2-2-2-2-0, FaSp) Credit on acceptance of dissertation. Graded IP/CR/NC. Open only to OT majors.