Are medical students agreeable? An exploration of personality in relation to clinical skills training

Abstract

Background: Clinical competencies like trust, empathy, and cooperation are emphasized in medical school curricula. Agreeableness, a personality domain, reflects these competencies. It is unclear, however, whether medical student personality is intrinsically agreeable.Aim: We explored whether medical student personality reflects Agreeableness, and compared student Agreeableness with that of police officer recruits, a group in which high Agreeableness is not preferred.Methods: Students and recruits completed the Revised NEO Personality Inventory, which measures domains of the five-factor model: Neuroticism, Extraversion, Openness, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness.Results: Medical student Agreeableness was at average levels. Students were high in Extraversion and Openness, reflecting personal growth, leadership, problem solving, and influencing. Relative to recruits, students had higher Neuroticism and Openness and lower Conscientiousness. Agreeableness and Extraversion did not differ. Using discriminant analysis, Neuroticism, Openness, and Conscientiousness accurately classified 77% of students and recruits.Conclusion: Medical students were not inordinately agreeable. They were ambitious, intellectually-creative problem solvers with a preference to direct/influence. Clinical skills training that acknowledges this style may enhance clinical education processes. Model-based methods for clinical skills—including agenda-setting, conflict resolution, and alliance making – that require mastery of techniques and have evidence-based relevance to patient care may be useful adjuncts to conventional clinical training.