A General Assessment of Confidence and Life Orientation among Medical Students

Abstract

To measure the level of confidence and components of life orientation among medical students and compare the confidence level with respect to gender and study program. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at CMH Medical and Dental College, Lahore, Pakistan. Non-probability convenience sampling was used to collect data from 385 students using a Standard questionnaire developed and available online by University of Stirling. Mann-Whitney U test and Kruskal Wallis test was used to compare confidence level of students with respect to gender and study programs. Results: There were 49.73% males and 50.27% females in this study and among them, 82.97% MBBS students, 10.81% of Nursing and 6.22% of the Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) students. The mean self esteem level in students was very low i.e. 15.8351±3.1178, mean optimism level, self efficacy and mindset level were all low i.e. 6.3568±2.28753, 2.8792±.56600, and 3.9061±1.25499 respectively that means students were generally under-confident. There was no median difference of any component of confidence level with respect to gender and study programs, except optimism which was slightly higher in males compared to females. Conclusion: The average level of four components of life orientation i.e. optimism, self esteem, self efficacy and mindset as well as average confidence level were all low among medical students irrespective of gender and study programs.