Unveiling how medical educators conceptualise resilience: a qualitative study
Linda Chan1,2,3,4, Emma V M Bilney5, Fraide A Ganotice6
1Department of Family Medicine and Primary Care, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China. lmjchan@hku.hk.
BMC Medical Education
|September 2, 2025
Summary
Medical educators in Hong Kong view resilience as a dynamic process shaped by cultural and professional factors, differing from individualistic Western concepts. This understanding can inform culturally sensitive support programs.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Psychology
- Sociology
Background:
- Medical educators face high-pressure environments requiring resilience.
- Limited research exists on medical educators' resilience conceptualizations outside Western contexts.
- Culturally-sensitive research on resilience in Asian medical education is needed.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore how medical educators in Hong Kong conceptualize resilience.
- To understand the cultural and professional nuances shaping these conceptualizations.
Main Methods:
- Twenty medical educators from two Hong Kong medical schools were recruited.
- Semi-structured online interviews were conducted and transcribed.
- Reflexive Thematic Analysis guided by a socio-ecological model was employed.
Main Results:
- Resilience was predominantly conceptualized as a dynamic process, sometimes overlapping with an outcome or trait.
- Adversity was a core component across all definitions.
- Conceptualizations were influenced by professional roles and sociocultural factors, emphasizing relational and cultural dimensions, distinguishing them from Western notions.
Conclusions:
- Western resilience frameworks may not fully encompass diverse cultural contexts.
- Medical educators' resilience concepts in Hong Kong are deeply linked to local cultural values and socio-contextual dynamics.
- Findings suggest broadening global resilience understanding beyond Western paradigms and informing culturally sensitive faculty development.
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