Resident self-other assessor agreement: influence of assessor, competency, and performance level

To review the literature on self-assessment in the context of resident performance and to determine the correlation between self-assessment across competencies in high- and low-performing residents and assessments performed by raters from a variety of professional roles (peers, nurses, and faculty).

Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected anonymous self-assessment and multiprofessional (360) performance assessments by competency and overall.

University-based academic general surgical program.

Sixty-two residents rotating in general surgery.

Mean difference for each self-assessment dyad (self-peer, self-nurse, and self-attending physician) by resident performance quartile, adjusted for measurement error, correlation coefficients, and summed differences across all competencies.

Irrespective of self-other dyad, residents asked to rate their global performance overestimated their skills. Residents in the upper quartile underestimated their specific skills while those in the lowest-performing quartile overestimated their abilities when compared with faculty, peers, and especially nurse raters. Moreover, overestimation was greatest in competencies related to interpersonal skills, communication, teamwork, and professionalism.

Rater, level of performance, and the competency being assessed all influence the comparison of the resident's self-assessment and those of other raters. Self-assessment of competencies related to behavior may be inaccurate when compared with raters from various professions. Residents in the lowest-performing quartile are least able to identify their weakness. These data have important implications for residents, program directors, and the public and suggest that strategies that help the lowest-performing residents recognize areas in need of improvement are needed.