Bocchino, Loredana2024-11-072024-11-072024Bocchino, Loredana . (2024). A Phenomenographic study of Clinician Educators' conceptions of clinical medical students' vocational habitus [Master’s dissertation, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg]. WireDSpace.https://hdl.handle.net/10539/42283https://hdl.handle.net/10539/42283A research report submitted to the Faculty of Health Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Health Sciences Education School of Clinical Medicine, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2024Background: Many medical educators have expressed concern about producing the ‘right kind of doctor’, noting that students’ professional identities are not always aligned with societal and professional expectations. The concept of habitus, whilst similar to identity, offers a more complex understanding of the process of ‘becoming’ inherent in vocational training, in that it can both shape students’ educational experiences as well as be shaped by them. There is currently little literature addressing clinicians’ perceptions or experiences of medical students’ vocational habitus. Methods: To explore the ways clinician educators understand clinical medical students’ vocational habitus, a phenomenographic study was undertaken in which fourteen semi- structured interviews were conducted with clinician educators from various clinical departments. Findings: Four conceptions of student vocational habitus were identified: 1) the Dependent Spectator, 2) the Interested Fledgling, 3) the Independent Contributor, and 4) the Interdependent Altruist. Conceptions were characterised by seven dimensions of variation: attitude to learning, communication skills, fortitude, values, professionalism, technical competence and relationship to technology. Two associated factors in the field were repeatedly reported that provide important context for the interpretation and development of these conceptions: failure to fail, and fitness for purpose of assessments. Conclusion: Different conceptions exist about clinical medical student vocational habitus, with the narrowest conceptions viewing students as ‘not right for the job’. There is dissonance between clinicians’ general perceptions of students’ habitus, and the idealised expectation. The progressive development of these conceptions along the continuum is likely shaped by the identified associated factors within the field, and other potential factors such as program characteristics, the hidden curriculum, or focus on research versus clinical service delivery.en© 2024 University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.Phenomenography; conceptions; vocational habitus; medical students vocational habitusUCTDSDG-4: Quality educationDissertationUniversity of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg