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Distorted perceptions of competence and incompetence are more than regression effects
M Albanese1, S Dottl, G Mejicano
1University of Wisconsin Medical School, 2069, Medical Sciences Center, 1007C WARF, 610 Walnut Street, Madison, WI, 53726-2397, USA. maalbane@wisc.edu
Summary
Medical students accurately estimated their exam scores but misjudged their rank. Regression effects did not fully explain these self-assessment inaccuracies, highlighting challenges for learning strategies relying on student self-evaluation.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Cognitive Psychology
- Educational Assessment
Background:
- Student self-assessment of performance is crucial for identifying learning needs.
- Previous observations suggest high- and low-performing students inaccurately gauge their exam skills.
- Regression effects, a statistical phenomenon, are hypothesized to influence these self-perceptions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether regression effects explain the observed inaccuracies in medical students' self-assessment of exam performance.
- To differentiate between true high/low performers and those misclassified due to statistical regression.
- To analyze the impact of regression effects on self-assessment accuracy for percent correct and percentile rank.
Main Methods:
- Second-year medical students (N=143) completed the Infection and Immunity final exam (IIF).
- Students estimated their performance (percent correct, percentile rank) post-exam.
- Students were categorized into five subgroups based on IIF and GPA to assess regression effects.
Main Results:
- Students accurately assessed their percent correct scores but inaccurately assessed their percentile rank.
- No significant differences were found between true and false low/high performing subgroups.
- Regression effects accounted for a smaller portion of self-assessment errors than initially hypothesized (max 14% for merged groups).
Conclusions:
- Medical students demonstrate accurate self-assessment for absolute scores (percent correct) but not relative standing (percentile rank).
- Regression effects do not solely explain the discrepancies in self-assessment for high and low performers.
- Instructional methods relying on student self-assessment require addressing distorted perceptions of test performance.
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