Dr. Meghan McConnell
Topic: The Importance of Emotion in the Acquisition and Transfer of Clinical Skills and Knowledge
Date: September 19, 2012
Time: 12:00pm to 1:30pm (Lunch will be served at DHCC)
Locations:
- Diamond Health Care Centre 2263
- LSC 1312
- MSB 107
- RJH 011
- KGH 235
- NHSC 9-374,/li>
- Alouette Room at Central City
Abstract
Background: Medical school and residency are emotional experiences for trainees. Most research examining emotion in medical school has focused on “negative moods” associated with physician burnout and poor quality of life. However, the influence of positive emotions on student learning and performance may be just as impactful. This paper presents a review of research into the influence of emotion on cognition, specifically how individuals learn complex skills and knowledge and how that information is transferred to new scenarios.
Method: Medline, PsycInfo, GoogleScholar, ERIC and Web of Science were used to search for articles on the interaction between emotion, learning and transfer. Representative themes were extracted and particularly relevant empirical findings highlighted.
Results: Emotions influence various cognitive processes that are involved in the acquisition and transfer of knowledge and skills. More specifically, emotions influence how individuals identify and perceive information, how they interpret it, and how they act upon the information available in learning and practice situations.
Conclusions: There are many ways in which emotions are likely to influence medical education. The implications of the identified literature need to be explored to ensure that learning is not treated simply as a rational, mechanistic process.
Biography
Meghan McConnell is currently a Post-doctoral Fellow at the Centre for Health Education Scholarship (CHES). She obtained her PhD in Cognitive Psychology from McMaster University. Her dissertation examined the extent to which circadian and emotional fluctuations influence the efficiency of attentional networks. While at McMaster, she tutored undergraduate and graduate students on experimental design and statistical procedures. She also worked as a research methods and statistical consultant for the Department of Radiology within McMaster University Medical School.
Following the completion of her PhD, she became a Post-doctoral Fellow at the Medical Council of Canada (MCC), where she learned about psychometric assessments in high stakes testing environments. It was through these measurement and evaluation activities that she became interested in the field of health professions education research. While at CHES, she plans to study how mood modulates the learning process; more specifically, she hopes to examine the influence of emotive states on self-assessment, clinical decision making skills, and receptivity to feedback.
Accreditation:
As an organization accredited to sponsor continuing medical education for physicians by the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS), the UBC Division of Continuing Professional Development designates this educational program as meeting the accreditation criteria of the College of Family Physicians of Canada for up to 1.5 Mainpro-M1 credits (per session). This program has been reviewed and approved by UBC Division of Continuing Professional Development. Each physician should claim only those credits he/she actually spent in the activity.
Accreditation Statement:
The CHES Research Rounds is a self-approved group learning activity (Section 1) as defined by the Maintenance of Certification program of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.
