Critical thinking of near and recent graduates of associate and baccalaureate respiratory therapy degree programs

Background Respiratory therapy education includes both associate (AAS/AS) and baccalaureate (BS) degree programs. This dichotomy has created discussions about the potential benefits of academic progression for entry-level practice. Little empirical evidence exists comparing the critical-thinking abilities of participants from these different educational pathways. This study was undertaken to investigate whether differences in critical-thinking skills exist between participants nearing graduation from AS and BS respiratory therapy programs. Methods This cross-sectional study recruited respiratory therapy participants (1 month pre- to 3 months post-graduation) from associate and baccalaureate programs nationwide. Critical thinking was assessed using the Health Sciences Reasoning Test-Numeracy (HSRT-N). Independent samples t-tests compared HSRT-N scores between degree types, gender, and ethnicity, with statistical significance set at P ≤ .05. Results A total of 184 participants (81 associate and 103 baccalaureate) completed the HSRT-N. No significant differences were found in any critical-thinking measure between associate and baccalaureate participants. Gender analysis showed borderline significance for numeracy ( P = .05) with male participants scoring higher, though the sample had substantially more women ( n = 150) than men ( n = 34). Significant differences were observed between white and non-white participants in all measures except evaluation ( P < .01), with white participants scoring higher. Conclusion Alignment between AS and BS programs in the teaching of critical-thinking skills is essential to ensure those skills are systematically developed and extended through academic progression. Both program types share responsibility for addressing the gaps identified in this study, particularly in the lower-performing domains of interpretation, evaluation, deduction, and numeracy. Future research should incorporate clinical performance measures and examine long-term development of critical-thinking skills throughout respiratory therapists’ careers.