RESEARCH ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS’ REFLECTION AND SELF-REGULATION

Abstract

The article presents the results of the empirical research on medical professionals’ levels of reflection and self-regulation and describes the correlation between them. It was supposed that investigated health care professionals have low and medium levels of reflection; medium self-regulation. It was supposed also that there is a direct correlation between the levels of reflection and self-regulation (a high level of reflection stimulates high self-regulation). The sample consisted of 41 medical workers (women). There were used the following methods in the research: 1) the diagnosis method of the level of reflection proposed by O. Karpov; 2) D. Leontiev's test “Differential type of reflection”; 3) the test-questionnaire for determine a person’s self-attitude proposed by V. Stolin and S. Pantileev; 4) the test-questionnaire “The study of volitional self-regulation” proposed by A. Zverekov and E. Eidman; 5) the questionnaire “The self-regulation style of behaviour” of V. Morosanova. Reflection of the studied medical professionals is low and medium; and their self-regulation is medium and high. They are not inclined to extraneous thoughts and reflections. They are a bit self-contained and rigid. They are able to effective planning and modelling. They can effective assess a situation and its results. They have rather positive self-attitude. Correlations between reflection and self-regulation were analysed in our research. The correlations between reflection and self-regulation are weak or moderate and mostly inverse. We can suppose that reflection, as a tendency to think and analyze, can interfere with the self-regulation of medical professionals. Their self-regulation often requires rapid reactions because of specifics of their professional work. Individual factors, attitudes to research, protective mechanisms etc., can influense also. The research hypotheses were confirmed partially. The hypotheses about low level of reflection and medium level of self-regulation of the investigated medical professionals were confirmed. The hypothesis about a direct correlation between the level of reflection and self-regulation of medical professionals was not confirmed. The prospects for further research: the expansion of the study sample; comparing the reflection and self-regulation of medicine students and actual medical professionals; studying the gender influence on the reflection and self-regulation of health care professionals; creating of recommendations and special methods to correct reflection and self-regulation of this professional group.