ArticleBMC medical education2024
Associations of clinical context-specific ambiguity tolerance with burnout and work engagement among Japanese physicians: a nationwide cross-sectional study.
Article in BMC medical education, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed.
- Burnout in health students and its relationship with demographic and academic characteristics: a survey-based study.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Vitality and Challenging Commitment in Times of Digital Intensification: Evidence for Healthy Educational Organizations Based on Teacher Engagement in Chile.European journal of investigation in health, psychology and education · 2026Article
- Managing diagnostic uncertainty in primary care: a mixed-methods study of family physicians' experiences in Türkiye.BMC primary care · 2026Article
- Article
- Validation of the Ambivalence and Uncertainty Scale.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Parental education level and medical student engagement: a multi-center cross-sectional study.BMC psychology · 2025Article
- Differences in Capacity for Wonder and Tolerance for Ambiguity by High School of Origin.JMA journal · 2025Article
- Tolerance of ambiguity and psychological wellbeing in newly qualified doctors: An analysis over multiple time points.Medical education · 2025Article
- Do family physicians develop ambiguity tolerance as they gain experience? A multicenter cross-sectional study.Journal of general and family medicine · 2025Article
- Translating and Validating the Japanese Version of the Tolerance for Ambiguity Scale.Medical science educator · 2025Article
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Abstract
purposeAmbiguity tolerance specific to the clinical context - in contrast to ambiguity tolerance as a personality trait - may vary with experience and has received considerable attention. Although this tolerance appears to be related to burnout and work engagement, few studies have examined this association among physicians. Thus, we aimed to examine the relationships between clinical context-specific ambiguity tolerance, burnout, and work engagement among physicians in Japan.
methodsWe conducted a nationwide cross-sectional study in Japan. We invited family physicians from 14 family medicine residency programs and physicians with specialties other than family medicine from monitors of an Internet survey company to participate in the study. We measured ambiguity tolerance in the clinical context using the Japanese version of the Tolerance of Ambiguity in Medical Students and Doctors (J-TAMSAD) scale, burnout using the Japanese version of the Burnout Assessment Scale (BAT-J), and work engagement using the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES). We performed a multivariable linear regression analysis to determine whether the J-TAMSAD scale score was associated with the BAT-J and UWES scores.
results383 respondents were included in the analysis. After adjustment for possible confounders, clinical context-specific ambiguity tolerance showed a dose-dependent negative association with burnout (adjusted mean difference -0.39, 95% confidence interval (CI) -0.56 to -0.22 for the highest J-TAMSAD score quartile compared with the lowest). Ambiguity tolerance in the clinical context also showed a dose-dependent positive association with work engagement (adjusted mean difference 0.83, 95% CI 0.49 to 1.16 for the highest J-TAMSAD score quartile compared with the lowest).
conclusionsOur study showed that tolerance for ambiguity in the clinical context was negatively associated with burnout, and positively associated with work engagement. These findings will be useful in developing interventions aimed at preventing burnout and promoting work engagement among physicians.
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