Personality types of medical students in terms of their choice of medical specialty (Preprint)

Abstract

BACKGROUND Research on personality types among doctors reveals its impact on medical specialty choices, suggesting that considering personality in career planning may enhance work satisfaction and reduce burnout risks. OBJECTIVE This study, encompassing 2140 medical students, explores how personality types, traits, and gender correlate with specialty preferences METHODS Subjects of the study were medical students from various universities in Poland. The study surveyed 2104 participants, who completed a general questionnaire and a personality test. To ensure we included undecided students and obtained meaningful data, we allowed participants to select up to three medical specialties from the 77 available in Poland at the time of the study. RESULTS The findings unveil significant correlations between gender, personality types, traits, and specialty preferences. Women tended to favor Neonatology, while men leaned towards Orthopaedics and traumatology of the locomotor system. ENFP-T (Extroverted, Intuitive, Feeling, Prospecting, and Turbulent) students showed a heightened interest in Psychiatry, whereas (ISFJ-T) Introverted, Observant, Feeling, Judging types favored Family Medicine and Paediatrics. CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, this research establishes a link between personality and medical specialty selection. Taking into account the significant role of personality traits, it should be to considered integrate them into the process of selecting a medical career or designing a medical curriculum. This approach may allow for the customization of programs to match students' traits, thereby cultivating improved clinical communication skills, fostering interprofessional collaboration and ultimately enhancing treatment outcomes and professional fulfillment among physicians.