[Gender factors in the selection of training for a medical specialty]

To investigate the choice-making process of male and female doctors regarding their wishes for a career, and their behaviour in the event of their trying to obtain a resident's post.

Descriptive.

An inquiry by telephone was held in 1995 among a group of 600 doctors all graduated from university in 1993 in the Netherlands. Of the respondents (n = 490; 82%) 57% of the female and 63% of the male doctors aspired to become a resident in a hospital. The 293 respondents who wanted to obtain a resident's post were asked for the factors that influenced their choices and to what extent they did. The scores ranked from 1 ('very positively') to 5 ('very negatively').

Within 2 years after graduating from university 26% worked as a resident. In their choice for a specialty male doctors were positively influenced by technology (mean score: 2.9 versus 2.5), status and income (5.9 versus 5.6) and scientific activities (2.4 versus 2.1). Women were more influenced by intensive contact with patients (2.0 versus 1.7), favourable working hours and relatively few shifts (10.9 versus 10.3). Of the women 43% wanted to work part time, as against 14% of the men. While the men preferred an informal approach in looking for a post (38%; formal approach: 29%), women were evenly divided: informal approach 36%, formal approach 36%.