Related Experiment Videos
Medical students' attitudes towards psychotherapy: an intervention-based pre-post comparison
M Voracek1, E Jandl-Jager, M Springer-Kremser
1Department of Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy, University of Vienna, Austria. martin.voracek@akh-wien.ac.at
Wiener Klinische Wochenschrift
|July 27, 2001
Summary
A brief educational session improved medical students' positive attitudes toward psychotherapy. This suggests integrating psychotherapy education into medical curricula can enhance future training likelihood.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Psychiatry
- Psychotherapy
Background:
- Limited research exists on medical students' specific attitudes toward psychotherapy.
- The flexibility of these attitudes following an educational intervention is largely unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess medical students' attitudes toward psychotherapy.
- To evaluate the short-term flexibility of these attitudes after an introductory psychotherapy course.
Main Methods:
- A pre-post study design was used with 159 advanced medical students.
- Participants completed questionnaires assessing indirect attitude measures, future training likelihood, and specialty preference.
- An introductory course on psychotherapy served as the intervention.
Main Results:
- Students' initial connotations of psychotherapy were positive and improved further after the course.
- The educational intervention led to more differentiated word associations regarding psychotherapy.
- Females showed more positive attitudes and higher likelihood for future psychotherapy training compared to males.
- Training likelihood remained stable post-intervention, even when costs were discussed.
Conclusions:
- Minimal educational interventions can positively influence medical students' attitudes toward psychotherapy.
- Integrating psychotherapy content into medical curricula is recommended to foster positive attitudes and training interest.