Knowledge, Attitude, Practice and Barriers of Research among Medical Students

Abstract

BACKGROUND:Understanding the concept of evidence-based medicine needs strong research knowledge. Yet, the emphasis of a research-oriented curriculum for undergraduate medical students is not developed to its fullest form. OBJECTIVE: The objective of the study was to evaluate knowledge, attitude, experience, and the barriers of research among medical undergraduates. METHODOLOGY: A descriptive cross-sectional study was done among medical students. The study participants anonymously filled out a five-part questionnaire consisting of (1) demography 2) knowledge 3) attitude 4) practice 5) barriers). Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: A total of 250 students took part in the study, of which 53.6% were males, and 46.4% were females. 47% was the knowledge score regarding the concept of research and its methodology. Sixty-five percent agreed to the importance of research in medical school, and sixty-three percent believed that research would facilitate a better understanding of the subject and clinical practice. Nearly 61% opined that research was not a waste of time and did not interfere in studies. Barriers for research were lack of awareness (62%), interest (57%), funds (56%), time (56%), and difficulty in follow-up of patients (45%). Almost 40% of students disagreed to lack of encouragement from the faculty. CONCLUSION: The study participants had fair knowledge regarding research and expressed a positive attitude towards involvement in research activity. Some of the barriers were lack of awareness, time, funds, and difficulty in patient follow-up.

Attitudes toward research in undergraduate psychology students at a public university in Mexico: A cross-sectional study

“…Clearly, the results show the importance of teaching in the development of students' research competencies, both in terms of knowledge and attitude, and confirm what has been described in other studies (e.g., Becerra et al, 2020;Hernandez et al, 2022;Kumar et al, 2020) regarding the conflict between the importance of research training and how difficult and discouraging teaching it can be.…”

“…Regarding the limitations of the study, although the instruments employed proved to be an adequate measure of attitudes, the omission of the complexity dimension in the semantic differential scale due the low reliability coefficient suggests the need to include more precise descriptors that facilitate the understanding of the perceived complexity of research by students, as some studies report that difficulty is perceived as a barrier that is negatively associated with attitudes towards IM (Balloo, 2019;Kumar et al, 2020). In…”

Attitudes toward Research in Undergraduate Psychology Students at a Public University in Mexico: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Regarding the limitations of the study, although the instruments employed proved to be an adequate measure of attitudes, the omission of the complexity dimension in the semantic differential scale due to the identified reliability coefficients suggests the need to include more precise descriptors that facilitate the understanding of the perceived complexity of IM by students, as some studies report that difficulty is perceived as a barrier that is negatively associated with attitudes towards IM (Balloo, 2019;Kumar et al, 2020). In addition, it is conceivable that the sample size utilized affected the statistical power of the study, despite the consistency of the identified associations when employing robust statistical analysis methods and controlling for multiple variables.…”