MED NORD--A tool for measuring medical students' well-being and study orientations

The relationship between medical students' well-being, motivation, and their conceptions of learning and knowledge has not been previously explored.

This study aimed to validate a research instrument intending to measure medical students' (n = 280) (1) experiences of stress, anxiety and disinterest, (2) motivational (thinking) strategies, (3) conceptions of learning and knowledge (epistemologies), and (4) approaches to learning.

We developed an instrument, MED NORD, which is a composition of scales measuring different theoretical constructs that previously have shown good predictive value, validity and reliability. A principal component analysis with Varimax-rotation was performed in order to see how the scales related to each other.

The internal consistency reliability was found to be satisfactory or good for each scale. The results showed five factors: Dysfunctional Orientation, Collaborative Knowledge Building Orientation, Cookbook Orientation, Social Orientation, and Individual Abilities Orientation. These study orientations were related to how medical students perceived their learning environment.

The new tool showed consistency and validity and was judged appropriate for future use in measuring medical students' well-being and study orientations.