Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34507587›Full record

ArticleBMC medical education2021

Intensity, dynamics and deficiencies of empathy in medical and non-medical students.

Krzysztof Sobczak, Agata Zdun-Ryżewska, Agata Rudnik

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC medical education, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
1.4field-weighted citation impact, top 20% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 13 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Krzysztof SobczakDepartment of Sociology of Medicine and Social Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Medical University of Gdansk, Tuwima 15 Str., 80-210, Gdansk, Poland. ksobczak@gumed.edu.pl.
Agata Zdun-RyżewskaDepartment of Quality of Life Research, Faculty of Health Sciences, Medical University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland.
Agata RudnikInstitute of Psychology, University of Gdansk, Gdansk, Poland.
Gdańsk Medical University · PLInstitute of Psychology · PL

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundEmpathy is an important competence in the professional development of medical students. The purpose of our study was to compare the levels and scales of empathy in people studying in different educational strategies.

methodsThe study was conducted between April 2019 and March 2020. Medicine, nursing, midwifery, physiotherapy, psychology, pedagogy and sociology students were the participants of this study. University students preparing for medical professions (n = 1001) and students of programs unrelated to medicine (n = 700) underwent the Empathy Quotient test (EQ-40). We have compared results in both study groups with the use of the distribution of density, analysis of variance and student's t-test.

resultsThe average results received by students of the university preparing for medical professions were lower (M = 42.6) than those of the non-medical university students (M = 45.3) and the differences between the universities turned out to be statistically important (t = - 5.15, df = 1699, p < 0.001). As many as 14.6% of the students in the 1st EQ class were preparing for various medical professions while 9% studied social sciences. 18.2% of all medical programme students (n = 412) manifested the lowest empathy class. Our research has revealed that the students with Asperger profile (AP) and high-functioning autism (HFA) studied at universities preparing for medical professions (n = 18) more frequently than at non-medical universities (n = 5).

conclusionsWe have noticed a serious indicator of erosion in the levels of empathy in medical students and an increase in the number of people with AP and HFA. Empathy decreases in students after the third year of their studies, regardless of the kind of university. We recommend an introduction of career counselling when specialization is being chosen.

Indexed as

Education, Medical, UndergraduateMedicineStudents, MedicalCross-Sectional StudiesEmpathyHumansEmpathyMedical educationMedical student

Identifiers

PMID34507587
PMCPMC8429476
OpenAlexW3197908268

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.