Risky business: medical students’ feedback-seeking behaviours: a mixed methods study
There are differing views on how learners’ feedback-seeking behaviours (FSB) develop during training. With globalisation has come medical student migration and programme internationalisation. Western-derived educational practices may prove challenging for diverse learner populations. Exploring under...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis Group
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Medical Education Online |
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| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/10872981.2024.2330259 |
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| author | Muirne Spooner Ciarán Reinhardt Fiona Boland Samuel McConkey Teresa Pawlikowska |
| author_facet | Muirne Spooner Ciarán Reinhardt Fiona Boland Samuel McConkey Teresa Pawlikowska |
| author_sort | Muirne Spooner |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | There are differing views on how learners’ feedback-seeking behaviours (FSB) develop during training. With globalisation has come medical student migration and programme internationalisation. Western-derived educational practices may prove challenging for diverse learner populations. Exploring undergraduate activity using a model of FSB may give insight into how FSB evolves and the influence of situational factors, such as nationality and site of study. Our findings seek to inform medical school processes that support feedback literacy. Using a mixed methods approach, we collected questionnaire and interview data from final-year medical students in Ireland, Bahrain, and Malaysia. A validated questionnaire investigated relationships with FSB and goal orientation, leadership style preference, and perceived costs and benefits. Interviews with the same student population explored their FSB experiences in clinical practice, qualitatively, enriching this data. The data were integrated using the ‘following the thread’ technique. Three hundred and twenty-five of a total of 514 completed questionnaires and 57 interviews were analysed. Learning goal orientation (LGO), instrumental leadership and supportive leadership related positively to perceived feedback benefits (0.23, 0.2, and 0.31, respectively, p < 0.05). Perceived feedback benefits are related positively to feedback monitoring and inquiry (0.13 and 0.38, respectively, p < 0.05). The personal cost of feedback is unsupported in quantitative data, but was a strong theme in interviews, as was feedback avoidance, peer feedback, and unsupportive learning environment. No differences were observed across sub-groups based on gender, study site, or student nationality. Integrated analysis describes FSB: avoiding ‘unsafe’ feedback (first, do no harm) and overcoming barriers (beat the system) and goal-centred curation (shop around) to optimise benefits. Diverse medical students across three continents undertake FSB with careful navigation, as a valued but risky business, that is highly contextualised. Promoting a constructive FSB is complex. Overcoming outdated theory and practices on the wards remains a challenge to psychologically safe, learner-centred feedback. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ffd32c112ab5402d8b0f0336e7ffd911 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1087-2981 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Medical Education Online |
| spelling | doaj-art-ffd32c112ab5402d8b0f0336e7ffd9112025-08-20T02:49:06ZengTaylor & Francis GroupMedical Education Online1087-29812024-12-0129110.1080/10872981.2024.2330259Risky business: medical students’ feedback-seeking behaviours: a mixed methods studyMuirne Spooner0Ciarán Reinhardt1Fiona Boland2Samuel McConkey3Teresa Pawlikowska4Health Professions Education Centre, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dublin, IrelandDepartment of Medicine, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dublin, IrelandData Science Centre, School of Population Health, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dublin, IrelandDepartment of International Health and Tropical Medicine, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dublin, IrelandHealth Professions Education Centre, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Dublin, IrelandThere are differing views on how learners’ feedback-seeking behaviours (FSB) develop during training. With globalisation has come medical student migration and programme internationalisation. Western-derived educational practices may prove challenging for diverse learner populations. Exploring undergraduate activity using a model of FSB may give insight into how FSB evolves and the influence of situational factors, such as nationality and site of study. Our findings seek to inform medical school processes that support feedback literacy. Using a mixed methods approach, we collected questionnaire and interview data from final-year medical students in Ireland, Bahrain, and Malaysia. A validated questionnaire investigated relationships with FSB and goal orientation, leadership style preference, and perceived costs and benefits. Interviews with the same student population explored their FSB experiences in clinical practice, qualitatively, enriching this data. The data were integrated using the ‘following the thread’ technique. Three hundred and twenty-five of a total of 514 completed questionnaires and 57 interviews were analysed. Learning goal orientation (LGO), instrumental leadership and supportive leadership related positively to perceived feedback benefits (0.23, 0.2, and 0.31, respectively, p < 0.05). Perceived feedback benefits are related positively to feedback monitoring and inquiry (0.13 and 0.38, respectively, p < 0.05). The personal cost of feedback is unsupported in quantitative data, but was a strong theme in interviews, as was feedback avoidance, peer feedback, and unsupportive learning environment. No differences were observed across sub-groups based on gender, study site, or student nationality. Integrated analysis describes FSB: avoiding ‘unsafe’ feedback (first, do no harm) and overcoming barriers (beat the system) and goal-centred curation (shop around) to optimise benefits. Diverse medical students across three continents undertake FSB with careful navigation, as a valued but risky business, that is highly contextualised. Promoting a constructive FSB is complex. Overcoming outdated theory and practices on the wards remains a challenge to psychologically safe, learner-centred feedback.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/10872981.2024.2330259Feedback-seekingfeedbackmixed methodsundergraduate feedbackfeedback literacy |
| spellingShingle | Muirne Spooner Ciarán Reinhardt Fiona Boland Samuel McConkey Teresa Pawlikowska Risky business: medical students’ feedback-seeking behaviours: a mixed methods study Medical Education Online Feedback-seeking feedback mixed methods undergraduate feedback feedback literacy |
| title | Risky business: medical students’ feedback-seeking behaviours: a mixed methods study |
| title_full | Risky business: medical students’ feedback-seeking behaviours: a mixed methods study |
| title_fullStr | Risky business: medical students’ feedback-seeking behaviours: a mixed methods study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Risky business: medical students’ feedback-seeking behaviours: a mixed methods study |
| title_short | Risky business: medical students’ feedback-seeking behaviours: a mixed methods study |
| title_sort | risky business medical students feedback seeking behaviours a mixed methods study |
| topic | Feedback-seeking feedback mixed methods undergraduate feedback feedback literacy |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/10872981.2024.2330259 |
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