Correlation between learning styles and attitudes toward interprofessional education among medical students: a cross-sectional study

TL;DR

This study explores how different learning styles among medical students relate to their attitudes toward interprofessional education, which is important for teamwork in healthcare.

Contribution

The study identifies specific learning styles and factors that correlate with positive attitudes toward interprofessional education among medical students.

Findings

Most students are 'divergers,' followed by 'assimilators,' 'accommodators,' and 'convergers.'

Abstract conceptualization and active experimentation learning modes are linked to positive attitudes toward interprofessional education.

Gender, age, and study stress influence attitudes toward interprofessional education.

Abstract

Interprofessional teamwork improves patient care quality, safety, and health outcomes. Interprofessional education (IPE) is crucial in today’s medical education to prepare students for the workforce as integral members of a collaborative team. The diversity of IPE learners indicates the importance of exploring the relationship between learning styles and attitudes toward IPE. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between learning styles and attitudes toward IPE.

A cross-sectional study was conducted between August 2023 and September 2023 in 49 colleges located in the south-eastern region of China. A convenience sampling approach was employed, selecting 500 students majoring in Clinical Medicine and Nursing. The students completed an online questionnaire, which included sociodemographic characteristics, educational characteristics, interprofessional educational characteristics, learning styles, and the readiness for interprofessional learning scale, and Kolb’s learning style inventory. Descriptive statistics, Spearman’s correlation, and multiple linear regression analysis were used to analyze the data.

The most learners are diverger (93.2%), followed by assimilator (3.4%), accommodator (2.6%), and Converger (0.8%). The total score on the RIPLS was 69.70 (7.42), ranging from 48 to 88. A statistical relationship could be established between learning styles and attitudes toward IPE.

Abstract conceptualization and active experimentation learning modes and convergers were closely linked with positive attitudes toward IPE. Gender, age, and study stress can affect attitudes toward IPE. This study highlights the need for medical education curricula to integrate innovative teaching methods such as PBL, role-playing, scenario simulation and clinical early exposure to strengthen professional identity, and improve abilities related to interprofessional learning.