Evaluation of affective domain elements in a new pharmacy practice course

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Education
• Affective Domain Elements (ADEs)
• Accreditation Standards

Background:

• New accreditation standards mandate integrating Affective Domain Elements (ADEs) into Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) curricula and admissions.
• This integration impacts both the educational content and the student selection process.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the relationship between pre-pharmacy admission variables and student performance in ADEs.
• To analyze the correlation between student self-assessments and faculty evaluations of ADE development and performance.

Main Methods:

• Correlational analysis of pre-pharmacy admission variables (e.g., age, prior degrees, PCAT scores) with student performance in ADEs.
• Comparison of student self-assessments against faculty evaluations for key ADEs like communication, leadership, professionalism, and self-awareness.

Main Results:

• Positive correlations found between student age and bachelor's degree completion with self-assessed communication and leadership skills.
• Faculty-assessed leadership and team readiness showed positive correlations with female students.
• Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT) scores correlated with professionalism and self-awareness, with mixed positive and negative associations.
• Faculty evaluations were consistently lower than student self-evaluations.

Conclusions:

• Admissions variables may provide insights for designing effective ADE-focused educational activities in PharmD programs.
• Utilizing both student and faculty evaluations can help identify developmental trajectories in ADEs.
• Further research into the interplay of admissions criteria and affective domain development is warranted.