Personality traits and resident education preferences within general surgery

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Surgical Training
• Psychology in Medicine

Background:

• General surgery residents face diverse learning environments and teaching styles.
• Trainees' learning preferences may be influenced by personality traits, such as introversion/extraversion.
• Understanding these influences is crucial for optimizing surgical education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate general surgery residents' personality traits (introversion/extraversion).
• To determine how personality traits impact preferred learning styles in various surgical education settings.
• To identify potential differences in learning preferences between introverted and extraverted residents.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional survey was administered to general surgery residents at four academic institutions.
• The survey assessed introversion/extraversion using the Big 5 Personality Trait model.
• Residents ranked the educational and motivational value of teaching methods in lectures, simulations, and operating room environments.

Main Results:

• Introverted residents preferred anonymous polls in lectures and found skills competitions least motivational.
• Extraverted residents showed varied preferences in lectures but found skills competitions most motivational.
• All residents found intraoperative feedback on operative technique most educational and motivational.

Conclusions:

• Links between residents' degree of extraversion and learning environment preferences were identified.
• Significant differences exist in what introverted and extraverted residents find most educational in lectures and simulations.
• Tailoring learning environments to individual resident preferences is essential for optimizing educational growth.