Evaluating Professionalism in Medical Students
Author Information
Author(s): Tiffin Paul A, Finn Gabrielle M, McLachlan John C
Primary Institution: Durham University
Hypothesis
Ratings of professionalism and conscientiousness would be more strongly associated with performance on SRQs probing knowledge of professional conduct compared to other types of item.
Conclusion
SRQs related to professionalism are likely to have relatively poor psychometric properties and lack associations with other constructs associated with undergraduate professional behaviour.
Supporting Evidence
- Professionalism items were less difficult compared to anatomy and skills SRQs.
- Professionalism item performance was uncorrelated with the standardised Conscientiousness Index scores.
- There were modest but significant correlations between standardised Conscientiousness Index scores and performance at anatomy items.
Takeaway
This study looked at how well medical students understand professionalism. It found that the questions about professionalism didn't really help tell who was doing well or poorly in medical school.
Methodology
Item Response Theory (IRT) was used to analyze question and student performance for SRQs relating to professionalism, anatomy, and skills.
Potential Biases
The study's reliance on peer nominations for professionalism may introduce bias.
Limitations
The study did not include sociodemographic variables, making it impossible to assess response bias according to characteristics like gender and ethnicity.
Participant Demographics
The study involved two cohorts of medical undergraduates, with 96 students in the first cohort and 98 in the second.
Statistical Information
P-Value
0.006
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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