Relationship between performance on child and adolescent psychiatry in-training and certification examinations

Studies across a range of specialties have consistently yielded positive associations between performance on in-training examinations and board certification examinations, supporting the use of the in-training examination as a valuable formative feedback tool for residents and residency programs. That association to date, however, has not been tested in child and adolescent psychiatry residents.

This is the first study to explore the relationship between performance on the American College of Psychiatrists' Child Psychiatry Resident In-Training Examination (CHILD PRITE) and subsequent performance on the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology's (ABPN) subspecialty multiple-choice examination (Part I) in child and adolescent psychiatry (CAP).

Pearson correlation coefficients were used to examine the relationship between performance on the CHILD PRITE and the CAP Part I examination for 342 fellows.

Second-year CAP fellows performed significantly better on the CHILD PRITE than did the first-year fellows. The correlation between the CHILD PRITE total score and the CAP Part I examination total score was .41 (P  =  .01) for first-year CAP fellows; it was .52 (P  =  .01) for second-year CAP fellows.

The significant correlations between scores on the 2 tests show they assess the same achievement domain. This supports the use of the CHILD PRITE as a valid measure of medical knowledge and formative feedback tool in child and adolescent psychiatry.