Trial Use of the Personal Qualities Assessment (PQA) in the Entrance Examination of a Japanese Medical University: Similarities to the Results in Western Countries

Abstract

The translated PQA tests may be appropriate for use with Japanese applicants, though further research considering cultural differences is required.

How effective are selection methods in medical education? A systematic review

“…Considering personality assessment more broadly, it has also been demonstrated to provide incremental validity over cognitive methods in a medical school selection process . Some initial evidence exists that Western personality tests may be adapted for use in Japanese contexts, although further research is required to examine the predictive validity of such adapted measures.…”

Do personality traits assessed on medical school admission predict exit performance? A UK-wide longitudinal cohort study

“…Those which have been published are often concerned with feasibility of use across cultural settings (e.g., Fukui et al 2014;Nedjat et al 2013) and/or are descriptive in terms of cross-sectional comparisons across different groups of students (e.g., graduate entrants versus school-leavers: Bore et al 2005a, b;James et al 2013;Lumsden et al 2005;Nedjat et al 2013). The few studies of predictive validity to date tend to be small scale, usually single site (Adams et al 2012(Adams et al , 2015Manuel et al 2005) and/or use local assessments as outcome measures (Adams et al 2012(Adams et al , 2015Dowell et al 2011;Manuel et al 2005), limiting their generalizable messages.…”

“…These can be grouped into ''paper and pencil'' assessments of personality traits (e.g., Adams et al 2012Adams et al , 2015Bore et al 2005a, b;Dowell et al 2011;Fukui et al 2014;James et al 2013;Lumsden et al 2005;Manuel et al 2005;Nedjat et al 2013), structured multiple interview approaches (Dore et al 2010;Eva et al, 2004aEva et al, , b, 2009Hofmeister et al 2008Hofmeister et al , 2009O'Brien et al 2011;Reiter et al 2007;Roberts et al 2008;Rosenfeld et al 2008), selection centres (Gafni et al 2012;ten Cate and Smal 2002;Ziv et al 2008;Gale et al 2010;Randall et al 2006a, b) and-the ''new kid on the block''-situational judgement tests (Christian et al 2010;Koczwara et al 2012;Lievens 2013;Lievens et al 2008;Patterson et al 2009). …”

How the personalities of medical students at the National University of Singapore differ from those of the local non-medical undergraduate population: a cross-sectional study

“…(20) The PQA can be employed in an Asian setting, as recently demonstrated by its use in Japan. (21) However, the PQA is designed for healthcare professionals and so may not be suitably extrapolated to non-medical students. (22) Other tests that can be considered are, for example, the Situational Judgement Tests, which were used in a European medical school to add to the admissions procedure for not only finding candidates who were good at natural sciences but also assessing their aptitudes when handling theoretical social constructs in complex situations.…”