Document Detail


Can the strength of candidates be discriminated based on ability to circumvent the biasing effect of prose? Implications for evaluation and education.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  14557103     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
PURPOSE: Residents have greater confidence in diagnoses when indicative features are presented in medical terminology. The current study examines the implications of this result by assessing its relationship to clinical ability. METHOD: Candidates writing the Medical Council of Canada's Qualifying Examination completed six questions in which the terminology used was manipulated. The influence of aptitude was examined by contrasting groups based on performance on the medicine section of Part I. RESULTS: The difference between the candidates was greatest in the mixed conditions in which the features consistent with one diagnosis were presented in medicalese and those consistent with a second diagnosis were presented using lay terminology; weaker candidates were more biased by language than stronger candidates. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that the language used in presenting case histories will influence the reliability of medical examinations. Furthermore, they suggest that weaker candidates might benefit from practice in making the translation between lay terminology and medicalese.
Authors:
Kevin W Eva; Timothy J Wood
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Academic medicine : journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges     Volume:  78     ISSN:  1040-2446     ISO Abbreviation:  Acad Med     Publication Date:  2003 Oct 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2003-10-14     Completed Date:  2003-11-26     Revised Date:  2007-11-15    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  8904605     Medline TA:  Acad Med     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  S78-81     Citation Subset:  AIM; IM    
Affiliation:
McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada. evakw@mcmaster.ca
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Age Factors
Aptitude*
Canada
Clinical Competence
Educational Measurement*
Humans
Licensure, Medical
Terminology as Topic*

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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