BackgroundThis study aims to determine the correlation between medical education systems, medical college (MC) and medical school (MS), and empathy by investigating the changes in empathy among students with each additional year of medical education.MethodsThe subjects were MC and MS students who had participated in the same study the previous year. All participants completed the same self-report instruments: a questionnaire on sociodemographic characteristics, and the Korean edition of the Student Version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy (JSE-S-K), Among 334 students, the final analysis was conducted on the data provided by 113 MC and 120 MS students, excluding 101 with incomplete data.ResultsThe age and sex did not affect the changes in empathy. Though the JSE-S-K score of MS was significantly higher than that of MC in initial investigation, this study found no difference of empathy between MC and MS.ConclusionEmpathy increased significantly after one year of medical education. The difference between two education systems, MC and MS, did not affect the changes in empathy.

These results suggest that empathy is associated with personality traits, such as RD, C, and SC, and medical education curriculum contributes incrementally to empathy for students. The difference in test scores for empathy between MC students and MS students might be due to differences in personality traits, such as SC.

Introduction: This study investigated the relationship between empathy and grades, marital status and personality in psychiatric residents. Methods: We sent a questionnaire package to 592 psychiatric residents in 82 psychiatric residency training hospitals. The questionnaire package collected socio-demographic data, and included the Jefferson Scale of Empathy, HP-version, Korean edition (JSE-HP-K), and Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI). Results: Fourth-year residents had significantly higher scores on the JSE-HP-K than 1st-year residents. Marital status and empathy had significant correlation. Married residents showed significantly higher scores on the JSE-HP-K. There were no significant differences in empathy with regard to age, sex, motivation towards medical science (entering medical school and psychiatry) and club activity. There was no significant correlation between subscales of the TCI and JSE-HP-K score. Discussion: These results suggest that empathy is associated with marital status and that psychiatry residency program contributes incrementally to empathy for residents.Asia-Pacific Psychiatry 3 (2011) 83-90

Within the first 6 months of visiting the hospital, >40% of the patients dropped out of treatment regardless of methylphenidate (MPH) use. Twenty percent of the subjects showed adherence to MPH medication after 36 months.

Objective This study was conducted to investigate the reliability and validity of the Korean version of Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ). Methods 20 participants with high-functioning autism (HFA) and 99 normal participants were recruited. All participants were completed the AQ and Empathy Quotient (EQ), and parents of the HFA group completed the parent-report AQ. For testing the reliability, we examined Cronbach’s alpha, performed item analysis, and compared self versus parent report score of HFA participants. For testing the validity, we compared the difference of the score of AQ among HFA and control group using independent t-tests, and performed correlation analysis between AQ and EQ. The receiver operation characteristic curve analysis was performed to determine a cut-off. Results The Korean version of the AQ exhibited adequate internal consistency, and in most items, the HFA group scored higher in comparison to the control group. It was demonstrated that AQ has good discriminant validity through the confirmation of the significant difference in the AQ score between two groups. The concurrent validity was established through the significant correlation between AQ and EQ in the HFA group. The best estimate cut-off score of AQ for screening was 23. Conclusion The Korean version of the AQ was determined as a reliable and valid instrument to assess HFA in Korean population.

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