Medical Specialty Choice and Personality

Yufit, Robert I.; Pollock, George H.; Wasserman, Edward

doi:10.1001/archpsyc.1969.01740130091009

Cited by 50 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…Personality studies of individuals choosing to practice surgery describe confident, aggressive individuals with few inhibitions, little social anxiety or guilt, and who are significantly more com-Downloaded by [University of Aberdeen] at 07:58 27 December 2014 petitive, dominant, and independent. 21,22,24 If this is an accurate portrayal, it may not be surprising that they reported less use of the two substances examined-benzodiazepines and marijuana. Except for a minor tendency to be tobacco users, surgeons appear to have low rates of substance use and were least likely to report any substance abuse or dependence on drugs in their lifetime.…”

Section: Personality and Stress Influencesmentioning

confidence: 98%

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Physician Substance Use by Medical Specialty

Hughes

Storr

Brandenburg

et al. 1999

Journal of Addictive Diseases

141

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Self-reported past year use of alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, cocaine, and two controlled prescription substances (opiates, benzodiazepines); and self-reported lifetime substance abuse or dependence was estimated and compared for 12 specialties among 5,426 physicians participating in an anonymous mailed survey. Logistic regression models controlled for demographic and other characteristics that might explain observed specialty differences. Emergency medicine physicians used more illicit drugs. Psychiatrists used more benzodiazepines. Comparatively, pediatricians had overall low rates of use, as did surgeons, except for tobacco smoking. Anesthesiologists had higher use only for major opiates. Self-reported substance abuse and dependence were at highest levels among psychiatrists and emergency physicians, and lowest among surgeons. With evidence from studies such as this one, a specialty can organize prevention programs to address patterns of substance use specific to that specialty, the specialty characteristics of its members, and their unique practice environments that may contribute risk of substance abuse and dependence.

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Section: Personality and Stress Influencesmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…[21][22] These personality traits might partially explain the higher rate of benzodiazepine use among psychiatrists. There also is the possibility that psychiatrists simply are more likely to disclose their drug problems in a study of this type.…”

Section: Personality and Stress Influencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physician Substance Use by Medical Specialty

Hughes

Storr

Brandenburg

et al. 1999

Journal of Addictive Diseases

141

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“…Person-oriented specialties refer to specialties that have more of an orientation toward people; technique-oriented describes specialties that deal more with techniques and instruments 14. This taxonomy focuses on what students will do in their career (i.e., working with people or performing techniques/procedures) rather than classifying students by whether they provide generalist or specialty care to patients (e.g., non-primary care versus primary care).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This taxonomy focuses on what students will do in their career (i.e., working with people or performing techniques/procedures) rather than classifying students by whether they provide generalist or specialty care to patients (e.g., non-primary care versus primary care). The person-oriented versus technique-oriented approach to conceptualizing specialties was first suggested in the late 1960s,1415 reappeared in the early 1990s,16 and has been used in recent studies1718 with person-oriented specialties described as family practice, internal medicine, obstetrics/gynecology, pediatrics, physical medicine and rehabilitation, and psychiatry; specialties categorized as technique-oriented include anesthesiology, dermatology, emergency medicine, otolaryngology, pathology, radiology, and surgery. Person-orientation versus technique orientation does not imply a certain skill set, such as communication ability, but instead the functions performed on a day to day basis.…”

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confidence: 99%

Person-Oriented Versus Technique-Oriented Specialties: Early Preferences and Eventual Choice

Manuel

Jones

2009

MEO

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Background:Students’ selection of a specialty is an important decision in their career as a physician. While distinguishing primary care physicians from non-primary care specialists has served a purpose for how medicine is practiced and managed, considering alternative ways of grouping specialties is appropriate when exploring specialty decisions.Purpose:This study explored how early specialty preferences correspond to eventual specialty choice using the person-oriented versus technique-oriented taxonomy.Method:Participants were 349 students who completed a career plan survey during the first semester of medical school and later graduated.Results:Chi-square analysis showed a statistically significant difference between students’ early preference for a person-oriented or technique-oriented specialty and the specialty they chose for their residency.Conclusion:Students with an early preference for person-oriented specialties were more likely to choose a person-oriented specialty, whereas students with an early preference for technique-oriented specialties were less likely to enter a technique-oriented specialty.

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“…Very few studies 3,6,7 of medical student career choice simultaneously address the interaction of multiple variables using logistic regression analysis. Relatively few 2,4,[8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] have looked at the relation between a medical student's personality and its influence on specialty choice.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%