Deliberate Practice and the Acquisition of Expertise

Abstract

The American medical system has room for improvement in the area of quality. Many systems-level approaches have been tried, but most have not yielded significant improvements in healthcare quality. This chapter focuses on strategies that mediate individual-level expert performance in a variety of domains. A central strategy underlying expert performance is deliberate practice. Deliberate practice is supported by having a learning orientation and “grit,” which is defined as long-term perseverance and passion for a goal, even if the goal is arduous. A general approach to performance improvement for individuals is also discussed. A reinvestment model for performance improvement proposes that individuals invest their time, effort, and cognitive resources, such as working memory capacity, in the design and implementation of deliberate practice for performance improvement.