Future physician-scientists: could we catch them young? Factors influencing intrinsic and extrinsic motivation for research among first-year medical students

The development and training effect of innovative undergraduate dental talents training project: A 6-year retrospective study

INTRODUCTION

To summarize the development of Innovative Undergraduate Dental Talents Training Project (IUDTTP) and investigate the training effect of this extracurricular dental basic research education activity from 2015 to 2020 to obtain educational implications.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The Guanghua School of Stomatology established the IUDTTP in 2015. The authors recorded the development process and analysed the participation situation, training effect, academic performance and overall satisfaction during 2015-2020 through documental analysis, questionnaire and quiz. The t-test, chi-square test and ANOVA were used to test the difference.

RESULTS

The educational goal, education module and assessment system of IUDTTP evolved and developed every year. A total of 336 students and 79 mentors attended the IUDTTP from 2015 to 2020, with the participation rate increasing from 45.1% to 73.5%. The participants exhibited favourable basic research abilities, manifesting as the increase of funded projects and published papers and satisfying quiz scores. Almost all students (94.94%) admitted their satisfaction with the IUDTTP. Moreover, the attended students surpassed the non-participants in terms of GPA, the number of acquired scholarships and outstanding graduates (p < .05). Likewise, the enrolment rate of postgraduate participants was significantly higher than non-participants.

CONCLUSIONS

To date, the training effect indicated that the IUDTTP has fulfilled the education aim. It brought positive effects on promoting research interest, cultivating research capacities and enhancing academic performance. The potential deficiencies of extracurricular educational activities, including inflexibility in schedule and insufficiency in systematisms, may be remedied by more systematic educational settings in the future.

Relationship matters: a qualitative study of medical students' experiences in a learner-driven research program in South Korea

BACKGROUND

Although research experience is important for medical students, it is difficult to develop research skills only through a formal curriculum. To develop research programs that address the authentic needs of students and align with the entirety of the medical school curriculum, a learner-centered approach may be more effective than an instructor-centered approach. This study investigates medical student perspectives on factors that help them develop research competency.

METHODS

Hanyang University College of Medicine in South Korea operates the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) as a supplement to its formal curriculum. Semi-structured interviews were held with 18 students (20 cases) in the program, and qualitative content analysis was performed using the software tool MAXQDA20.

RESULTS

The findings are discussed in relation to three domains: learner engagement, instructional design, and program development. The students were more engaged when they perceived the program as a new experience, had prior research experience, wanted to make a good impression, and felt a sense of contribution. In terms of instructional design, they positively participated in research when their supervisors respected them, set clear tasks, provided constructive feedback, and invited them into the research community. In particular, the students highly valued relationships with their professors, and these relationships served not only as a main motivating factor in their research participation but also affected their college lives and careers.

CONCLUSIONS

The longitudinal relationship between students and professors has newly emerged in the Korean context as a factor that strengthens student engagement in research and the complementary relationship between formal curriculum and MSTP was highlighted to encourage student engagement in research.

Predictors of self-reported research self-efficacy and perception of research amongst medical students in the United Kingdom: a national cross-sectional survey

PURPOSE

There has been a decline in the number of academic clinicians in the UK, and there are ethnic/gender disparities in the academic workforce. Higher research self-efficacy (RSE) and a positive perception of research (PoR) amongst students are associated with a higher motivation to engage in academic medicine. Hence, this study aimed to determine the factors that influence RSE and PoR amongst UK medical students.

METHODS

This is a multicentre cross-sectional survey of medical students in 36 UK medical schools in the 2020/21 academic year. Multiple linear regression was used to investigate the association between students' demographics and RSE/PoR. P-values less than a Bonferroni-corrected significance level of .05/28 = .0018 were considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

In total, 1573 individuals participated from 36 medical schools. There were no ethnic differences in PoR or RSE scores. Although there were no gender differences in PoR, female students had lower RSE scores than male students (adjusted β = -1.75; 95% CI: -2.62, -0.89). Research experience before medical school (adjusted β = 3.02; 95% CI: 2.11, 3.93), being in the clinical training phase (adjusted β = 1.99; 95% CI: 1.09, 2.90), and completing a degree before medical school (adjusted β = 3.66; 95% CI: 2.23, 5.09) were associated with higher RSE.

CONCLUSION

There were no associations between the predictor variables and PoR. Female students had lower self-reported RSE scores. Future studies should investigate the role of targeted research mentorship in improving RSE amongst female medical students.

Design and Transition of an Emergency E-Learning Pathology Course for Medical Students-Evaluation of a Novel Course Concept

BACKGROUND

Around the world, the emergency brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic forced medical schools to create numerous e-learning supplements to provide instruction during this crisis. The question now is to determine a way in which to capitalize on this momentum of digitization and harness the medical e-learning content created for the future. We have analyzed the transition of a pathology course to an emergency remote education online course and, in the second step, applied a flipped classroom approach including research skills training.

METHODS

In the summer semester of 2020, the pathology course at the Technical University of Munich was completely converted to an asynchronous online course. Its content was adapted in winter 2021 and incorporated into a flipped classroom concept in which research skills were taught at the same time.

RESULTS

Screencasts and lecture recordings were the most popular asynchronous teaching formats. Students reported developing a higher interest in pathology and research through group work. The amount of content was very challenging for some students.

CONCLUSION

Flipped classroom formats are a viable option when using pre-existing content. We recommend checking such content for technical and didactic quality and optimizing it if necessary. Content on research skills can be combined very well with clinical teaching content.

Motivation, self-efficacy, perception, curiosity, and barriers toward medical research among undergraduates in China

Medical research is important to scientific progress and medical education. Institutions worldwide have sought to increase student involvement in research such as clinician-scientists training programs, while little is known about how medical undergraduates perceive research. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China, with first-fourth year undergraduates. An online, anonymous, and self-rating 5-point Likert questionnaire was conducted to investigate medical undergraduates' demographic characteristics and assess motivation, self-efficacy, perception, curiosity, and barriers regarding medical research. Content validity was checked with experts and face validity was checked for clarity and understanding of the questionnaire. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the questions ranged from 0.813 to 0.879. A total of 3273 medical undergraduates were surveyed, and 86.62% (2835) participants (male 962, female 1873) were identified as effective. Males scored higher than females on self-efficacy (p < 0.001), perception (p = 0.017), and curiosity (p < 0.001), and lower on barriers (p < 0.001). The second year students are at the peak of their perception (p = 0.006) and lowest barrier scores (p = 0.003). Students with scientific research experience scored higher in motivation (p = 0.002), self-efficacy (p < 0.001), perception (p < 0.001), and curiosity (p < 0.001). Lack of proper mentoring opportunity (86.2%) and knowledge (84.5%) were the main barriers in conducting research. Even though they have a positive perspective, only a few undergraduates enrolled in research. Medical universities should encourage faculties to supervise and guide undergraduates' projects, and provide feasible solutions for students to learn scientific knowledge and skills. It is vital to build a research-oriented environment and academic atmosphere.

A national intercalated medical student research program - student perceptions, satisfaction, and factors associated with pursuing a PhD

BACKGROUND

To counteract a decreasing number of physician-scientists, a national intercalated Medical Student Research Programme (MSRP) was launched in Norway in 2002. We aimed to assess whether the students' favourable perceptions and satisfaction with the program had prevailed since the inception in 2002 and until 2015, and to identify factors associated with pursuing a PhD.

METHODS

The study was an incorporation of data from two previous national evaluations of the MSRP performed in 2007 and 2015. We used electronic questionnaires to explore demographic characteristics, area and type of research, student satisfaction, and future scientific goals. In 2007, questionnaires were sent to all 208 students, and 183 (88%) replied. In 2015, the corresponding numbers were 279, and 240 (86%). Categorical data were analysed using either Kruskal-Wallis or Pearson's chi square test. Differences between sample means were assessed with Student`s t-test while logistic regression was used to test associations between selected covariates and the students' ambitions to pursue a PhD degree.

RESULTS

Overall, the student satisfaction was 79%. However, more students in 2015 received less regular and less supervision time and expressed a need for more of it. Seventy-seven per cent expressed an ambition to pursue a PhD. Students were more likely to have a PhD ambition if they were satisfied with the program, had a supervisor with high expectations for them, or had already published some of their results. At both time points, students (86% vs. 89%) responded that the MSRP had a positive impact on their regular curriculum achievements.

CONCLUSIONS

The high degree of satisfaction with the national MSRP among undergraduate students has prevailed since the inception in 2002. By far, the program has also met its goal to increase the number of aspiring physician-scientists. However, to maintain that goal over time, adequate and personal supervision is a prerequisite.

Public Health Student's Attitudes Toward Research

Research is able to improve the lives of big populations by investigating effective interventions and then implementing those through public health policies. Whilst research on the inclination of Medical or Science undergraduate and postgraduate students has been conducted, little is known about what students pursuing a Masters degree in Public Health perceive the purpose of research to be. Their perceptions and inclinations will shape their research pursuits and career directions, which impacts the health outcomes of the community. Our findings suggest MPH students see improving the lives of the community as the most important purpose of research. Student's had more inclination to pursue research when influenced by a mentor however, many students still claimed that they either lacked confidence and skills in completing research or had no intention of pursuing research beyond their degrees, which suggests the need for curriculum adjustments.

Academic motivation among senior students majoring in rehabilitation related professions in China

OBJECTIVE/BACKGROUND

In mainland China, most universities offer general rehabilitation curricula rather than specialized curricula. The purpose of the current study is to investigate senior students' academic motivation for rehabilitation and examine whether it varies among different curriculum structures, students' gender, specific interests, and parental average education level.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study recruited both senior students in general and those who specialized in rehabilitation curricula using an online survey. The Academic Motivation Scale (AMS) was used to measure academic motivation.

RESULTS

The response rate was 74.68%, and 59 senior students in total (male: 34.48%; female: 65.52%) were analyzed. Twenty-nine (50.00%) students were from a general rehabilitation curriculum at Guangxi Medical University, and the rest (n = 29, 50.00%) were from a specialized curriculum at West China Medical School of Sichuan University. The overall average academic motivation score was 30.96 ± 5.92. Students in the specialized rehabilitation curriculum (32.85 ± 6.26) showed a significantly higher academic motivation score than those in the general rehabilitation curriculum (29.10 ± 5.00, p<0.05). Male (31.13 ± 5.67) and female (30.88 ± 6.12) students had equally high scores (p = 0.88). Students who had specific interests (29.81 ± 4.73) and those who did not (24.69 ± 4.92) shared the same academic motivation (t = 2.00, p = 0.06).

CONCLUSIONS

Senior rehabilitation science students in specialized curricula have higher levels of academic motivation than those in general curricula. There was no significant difference in academic motivation scores based on students' gender, specific interests, or parental average education levels.

Portuguese Medical Students' Interest for Science and Research Declines after Freshman Year

The integration of scientific research into medical curricula remains insufficient despite its advantages for medical students' professional development and the advancement of medicine. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of first-year medical course attendance on medical students' attitudes and perceptions towards scientific research and clinical practice, while also assessing the contribution of sociodemographic and academic factors. Two hundred and thirteen medical students self-administrated a questionnaire at the beginning and at the end of the first school year. Their responses were compared and two regression models were calculated to assess factors influencing students' attitudes and perceptions. After freshman year, students displayed significantly lower positive attitudes towards science and research. Their motivation to perform research and to integrate it into the curriculum also decreased, while the importance attributed to research skills for clinical practice increased. Motivation to perform research and negative attitudes were positively and negatively associated with grade point average (GPA), respectively. Female students and those who attended public secondary schools attributed greater importance to communication skills. This study reinforces the need to early develop research skills and positive attitudes in medical students, motivating them to become physician-scientists. Additional follow-up studies may offer further contributions to the integration of research into medical curricula.

Research ability and research motivation of postgraduate nursing students in traditional Chinese medicine colleges

Aim

To investigate the relationship between research ability and research motivation of postgraduate nursing students in traditional Chinese medicine colleges and identify other factors that may have an impact on the research ability of postgraduate nursing students.

Design

A cross‐sectional electronic survey was used to collect data from 191 postgraduate nursing students.

Methods

A total of 191 postgraduate nursing students from seven traditional Chinese medicine colleges were investigated from October to November 2020 using self‐rated scales for research ability and research motivation. The relationship between the variables affecting the research ability of postgraduate nursing students in traditional Chinese medicine colleges was determined.

Results

There was a positive correlation between the score of self‐rated research ability and research motivation among 191 postgraduate nursing students in traditional Chinese medicine colleges. Multiple stepwise regression analysis showed that grade, research motivation, age and active participation in class discussions were the main factors affecting the self‐rated research ability.

Conclusion

The self‐rated research ability of postgraduate nursing students in traditional Chinese medicine colleges is positively correlated with research motivation. According to the research motivation orientation, adopting targeted training methods and establishing correct professional understanding may improve the research ability of postgraduate nursing students.

Academic Success Experiences: Promoting Research Motivation andSelf-Efficacy Beliefs among Medical Students

THEORY

Medicine is facing a physician-scientist shortage. Medical training could contribute to developing physician-scientists by stimulating student research involvement, as previous studies showed this is related to research involvement in professional practice. Motivation for research and research self-efficacy beliefs are related to student research involvement. Based on social cognitive theory, success experiences in doing research may enhance research motivation and self-efficacy beliefs. However, the role and type of success experiences in promoting research self-efficacy beliefs and motivation especially early in medical training has not yet been investigated. Therefore, we examined if academic success experiences within an undergraduate course in academic and scientific skills increased research motivation and self-efficacy beliefs among medical students. Furthermore, type of success experience was taken into account by looking at the effects of academic success experiences within standard (i.e., exam) versus authentic (i.e., research report and oral presentation) assessments.

HYPOTHESES

It was hypothesized that academic success experiences increase intrinsic motivation for research and self-efficacy beliefs. Furthermore, we hypothesized that authentic assessments influence intrinsic motivation for research and self-efficacy beliefs to a larger degree than standard assessments, as the authentic assessments mirror real-world practices of researchers.

METHOD

First-year undergraduate medicine students followed a course in academic and scientific skills in which they conducted research individually. Their academic success experiences were operationalized as their grades on two authentic research assessments (written report and oral presentation) and one less authentic assessment (written exam). We surveyed students before the course when entering medical school (i.e., baseline measure) and 1 year after the course in their 2nd year (i.e., postmeasure). Both the baseline and postmeasure surveys measured intrinsic motivation for research, extrinsic motivation for research, and research self-efficacy beliefs. Linear regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between academic success experiences and intrinsic motivation for research, extrinsic motivation for research, and research self-efficacy beliefs on the postmeasure. We adjusted for prior research motivation and self-efficacy beliefs at baseline. Therefore, this adjusted effect can be interpreted as an increase or decrease in motivation. In addition, we adjusted for age, gender, and grade point average (GPA) of the first 4 months, as these variables were seen as possible confounders.

RESULTS

In total, 243 of 275 students participated (88.4%). Academic success experiences in writing and presenting research were related to a significant increase in intrinsic motivation for research. After adjusting for prior GPA, only the effect of presenting remained. Experiencing success in presenting enhanced research self-efficacy beliefs, also after adjusting for prior GPA. Higher grades on the exam did not affect intrinsic motivation for research or research self-efficacy significantly. Also, none of the success experiences influenced extrinsic motivation for research.

CONCLUSIONS

Academic success experiences on authentic research tasks, especially presenting research, may be a good way to enhance intrinsic motivation for research and research self-efficacy beliefs. In turn, research motivation and self-efficacy beliefs promote research involvement, which is a first step in the physician-scientist pipeline. Furthermore, this study established the applicability of the social cognitive theory in a research context within the medical domain.

Research in Action-Students' Perspectives on the Integration of Research Activities in Undergraduate Biomedical Curricula

We describe and evaluate our practice-based learning approach for research in undergraduate students studying Biomedical Sciences at Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands. First-year students who started their study between 2015 and 2018 actively participated in data collection and measurements, including anthropometry, electrocardiogram findings, genetic variants, and lifestyle habits. All data were entered into one anonymous database, which was used by students to analyze their research questions. In 2019, 44 of the 87 students (50%) valued active measurements better than questionnaires. Most students (strongly) agreed that they have learned about data collection and were inspired to learn more about biomedical research.

Preliminary study of the relationship between career choice motivation and understanding of professionalism in newly enrolled medical students in China: a cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVES

Early professionalism education for first-year students is important for generating sound knowledge and attitudes towards medical professionalism. Of the many factors affecting professionalism and professional identity formation in medical students, career choice motivation is an understudied one. This study aimed to explore the relationship between the career choice motivations of first-year medical students and their understanding of professionalism.

SETTINGS AND PARTICIPANTS

A cross-sectional survey of 940 first-year clinical medicine students was conducted at China Medical University in September 2017 to explore students' motivation to study medicine and its relationship with students' understanding of professionalism. Demographics, career choice motivation and professionalism were obtained through paper questionnaires. Logistic regression analysis was used to analyse the association between career choice motivation and understanding of professionalism while controlling for potential demographic confounders.

RESULTS

The most common career choice motivations for first-year medical students (N=843) were interested in the health sciences, income and social status and advocating altruism. The most mentioned subdimensions of professionalism were accountability, pursuit of excellence and compassion. There were significant differences in the understanding of professionalism among students with different career choice motivations.

CONCLUSION

First-year medical students with different motivations to study medicine also have different understandings of professionalism. Medical educators can explore motivations to learning medicine as a new entry point to providing professionalism education for newly enrolled medical students.

Twelve tips to offer a short authentic and experiential individual research opportunity to a large group of undergraduate students

Engaging students in research during medical school could contribute to creating an academic attitude among students, which underlies practicing evidence-based medicine in future professional practice. However, attempts to involve undergraduate students in research during medical training remain inadequate. Most medical schools educate large numbers of students at the same time, especially in early phases of medical training. Large scale education on the one hand and individually providing students with authentic research experiences on the other hand is considered not that easy to achieve. Drawing on our own experiences, existing literature and theories we propose twelve tips to design and implement a course in which authentic individual research experiences can be provided to a large group of undergraduate students.

Promoting positive perceptions of and motivation for research among undergraduate medical students to stimulate future research involvement: a grounded theory study

BACKGROUND

Research is of great value to make advancements within the medical field and, ultimately, offer the best possible patient care. Physician-scientists are key in contributing to the development of medicine, as they can bridge the gap between research and practice. However, medicine currently faces a physician-scientist shortage. A possible solution to cultivate physician-scientists is to engage medical students in research in early phases of medical school. Evidence-based strategies to stimulate positive perceptions of and motivation for research among students could help to enhance research engagement. Consequently, understanding of students' perceptions of and motivation for research is needed. Therefore, this study aimed to identify conditions under which students develop positive perceptions of and motivation for research by answering the following sub-questions: 1) how do first-year medical students perceive research? and 2) which factors contribute to motivation or demotivation for conducting research?

METHODS

We conducted a qualitative study with individual interviews using a grounded theory approach, involving 13 purposively sampled first-year medical students at Leiden University Medical Center.

RESULTS

Our results suggest that first-year students are already able to identify many aspects of research. Students elaborated on the relevance of research for professional practice and personal development. Furthermore, our results suggest a relationship between perceptions of and motivation for research. Some perceptions were identical to motivating or demotivating factors to conduct research, like the relevance of research for practice and performing statistics respectively. Other motivating factors were, among others, acknowledgment, autonomy, and inspiring role models. Demotivating factors were, among others, lack of autonomy and relevance, and inadequate collaboration.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results contribute to the idea that perceptions of research are related to motivation for research, which offers possibilities for interventions to promote motivation for research by making use of student perceptions of research. Consequently, practical implications to stimulate research engagement in early phases of medical school are provided. Moreover, the results contribute to existing motivational theories like Theory of Planned Behavior and Self-Determination Theory within this specific domain.

Motivation to Learn Neuroanatomy by Cadaveric Dissection is Correlated with Academic Performance

Implementing educational activities, such as a wet lab with cadaveric brain dissection, is known to have a direct impact on medical students' motivation. These activities demonstrate the clinical relevance of concepts taught in the classroom setting. The correlation between motivation and academic performance is not clear. First year medical students participated in wet lab activities. The wet lab included cadaveric dissection of the surface and internal anatomy of the brain, as well as discussions facilitated by the neuroscience faculty and clinicians. Discussions were centered around the clinical relevance of the neuroanatomical features dissected during the wet laboratory activities. Following completion of the laboratory activities, students completed a survey, which was used to assess the students' motivation for learning neuroanatomy based on the Attention, Relevance, Confidence, Satisfaction (ARCS) model of motivation. These results were then correlated with performance on a laboratory examination that tested three-dimensional and cross-sectional knowledge of neuroanatomy and practical skills including the use of imaging techniques. The total mean score of motivation was generally high for all categories of ARCS model of motivation (4.26/5) and was highest for Relevance (4.46/5). When these results were correlated with students' performance on the lab examination, a positive correlation between students' motivation and lab examination scores was found (R² = 0.877). Implementation of the neuroanatomy cadaveric dissection lab led to increased student motivation, which was positively correlated with students' academic performance. Clin. Anat. 32:128-135, 2019. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Scientific activity by medical students: the relationship between academic publishing during medical school and publication careers after graduation

INTRODUCTION

Engagement of clinicians in research is important for the integration of science and clinical practice. However, at this moment, there is a shortage of clinician-scientists. Success experiences can stimulate student interest in a research career. Conducting actual research leading to publication is a potential method to gain success experience. This study assessed whether publication as a medical student is associated with publication after graduation. We determined whether medical students in the Netherlands who are involved in research, as measured by publication in international journals before graduation: 1) are more likely to publish, 2) publish a greater number of papers, and 3) have higher citation impact scores after graduation.

METHODS

We matched 2005-2008 MD graduates (with rare names, n = 4145 in total) from all eight Dutch university medical centres to their publications indexed in the Web of Science and published between 6 years before and 6 years after graduation. For sensitivity analysis we performed both automatic assignment on the whole group and manual assignment on a 10% random sample.

RESULTS

Students who had published before graduation: 1) were 1.9 times as likely to publish, 2) published more papers, and 3) had a slightly higher citation impact after graduation.

DISCUSSION

Medical students who conducted research leading to a publication before graduation were more likely to be scientifically active after graduation. While this is not a causal relationship per se, these results cautiously suggest that successful early involvement in research could influence the long-term scientific activity of clinicians.

Fostering the physician-scientist workforce: a prospective cohort study to investigate the effect of undergraduate medical students' motivation for research on actual research involvement

OBJECTIVES

The medical field is facing a physician-scientist shortage. Medical schools could contribute to developing physician-scientists by stimulating student involvement in research. Studies have examined motivation for research as a key parameter of success. However, previous studies did not investigate if students act on their self-reported motivation. The aim of this study is to examine if motivation for research of medical students is related to actual research involvement. Furthermore, this study distinguishes intrinsic (IM) and extrinsic motivation (EM) for research and aims to investigate if a type of motivation matters in the relation between research motivation and involvement.

DESIGN AND SETTING

Prospective cohort study in which students were surveyed at the start of medical school and reported IM and EM for research, self-efficacy, perceptions of research and curiosity on a 7-point Likert scale. One year later, students involved in research were identified. Logistic regression was used to examine influences of IM and EM on research involvement.

PARTICIPANTS

All undergraduate medical students starting at one medical school in the Netherlands in 2016. In total, 315 out of 316 students participated (99.7%), of whom 55 became involved in research (17.5%).

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE

Research involvement, which was operationalised as the enrolment of students in the research-based honours programme or the involvement of students in voluntary research activities outside of the regular curriculum.

RESULTS

Students with higher levels of IM were more often involved in research (OR 3.4; 95% CI 2.08 to 5.61), also after adjusting for gender, age, extracurricular high school activities, self-efficacy, perceptions and curiosity (OR 2.5; 95% CI 1.35 to 4.78). Higher levels of EM increased the odds of research involvement (OR 1.4; 95% CI 0.96 to 2.11). However, the effect of EM disappeared after adjusting for the above-mentioned factors (OR 1.05; 95% CI 0.67 to 1.63). Furthermore, the effect of IM remained after adjusting for EM, whereas the effect of EM disappeared after adjusting for IM.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that the type of motivation matters and IM influences research involvement. Therefore, IM could be targeted to stimulate research involvement and could be seen as the first step towards success in fostering the physician-scientist workforce.