Character Strength Profile Related to Courage as Virtue among Dental Professionals

In the background of reported high distress among medical students and health professionals, character building at the level of health institutions may be helpful for augmenting academic performance and nurturing well-being during the training period of budding health professionals.

This study aims to assess non-cognitive positive traits, particularly Values in Action-character strengths related to the virtue of courage among trainees and doctors. It may reveal the association of challenging situations being faced in health profession with inculcation of the virtue of courage.

Data regarding character strengths profile with reference to the psychological virtue of courage among students and residents of dental institution (n = 54) were collected and analyzed.

Participants of all the three groups were found to display at least a minimum of each of the character strengths included in the virtue of courage. Perseverance was significantly higher in postgraduate students than undergraduate students and senior residents. Recurrent physician burnout has been reported to be associated with distress symptoms during their medical education at least once.

Positive institutions may play an important role to reduce the intensity and incidence of distress sequelae among medical students by taking initiatives for character building, with reference to augmenting character strengths of virtue of courage.