Educational Neuroscience and Psychological Factors Associated with Learning in Undergraduate Physiotherapy Students

Abstract

Educational neuroscience has emerged as an interdisciplinary field that integrates findings from neuroscience, psychology, and educational sciences to better understand the mechanisms underlying learning and academic performance. In higher education, particularly in health science programs such as physiotherapy, psychological factors including academic motivation, self-efficacy, emotional regulation, executive functioning, and academic anxiety play a decisive role in students' ability to acquire and apply complex clinical knowledge. Despite increasing interest in neuroeducation, empirical evidence examining the combined influence of neuroeducational principles and psychological variables on physiotherapy students' learning outcomes remains limited.

The present study aimed to analyze the relationship between educational neuroscience factors and psychological variables associated with learning among undergraduate physiotherapy students through a cross-sectional correlational design. A practical case study was conducted using a sample of 220 undergraduate students enrolled in a physiotherapy program at a Latin American university. Data were collected through validated psychometric instruments assessing academic motivation, self-efficacy, emotional regulation, executive functioning, academic anxiety, and perceived learning outcomes. Descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation coefficients, multiple linear regression, and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were employed to examine the predictive capacity of psychological variables on academic learning.

The findings are expected to demonstrate that motivation, executive functioning, and self-efficacy significantly predict learning outcomes, whereas academic anxiety negatively influences academic achievement. These results highlight the relevance of integrating neuroeducational strategies into physiotherapy curricula to enhance cognitive performance, emotional well-being, and professional competence.

The study contributes to the growing body of educational neuroscience research by providing an integrative framework for understanding cognitive and psychological determinants of learning in health sciences education. The findings may inform curriculum development, instructional design, and student support interventions aimed at improving academic success in physiotherapy education.