Association between tolerance for ambiguity specific to the clinical context and empathy in medical trainees

A multicenter cross-sectional study in Japan

Bibliographic Data

ID21447752
AuthorsHirohisa Fujikawa (0000-0002-8195-1267, Keio University, corresponding author), Takuya Aoki (0000-0002-8232-2155, Division of Clinical Epidemiology, The Jikei University School of Medicine), Daisuke Son (0000-0002-7053-162X, The University of Tokyo), Mikio Hayashi (0000-0002-9670-5683, The University of Tokyo), Masato Eto (0000-0002-6036-3431, The University of Tokyo)
Year2024
Volume46
Issue4
Pages512-518
Publication date2024-04-02
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueMedical Teacher (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0142-159X • E-ISSN: 1466-187X
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/0142159x.2023.2259065
PMID37734453
OpenAlexW4386917793
LanguageEN
References cited35

PURPOSE: Physicians' empathy and ambiguity tolerance have recently become a focus of medical education. However, the association between the two concepts remains unclear. This study examined the association between empathy and ambiguity tolerance in the clinical context among medical trainees. METHODS: We conducted a multicenter cross-sectional study in 12 institutions: 2 universities for medical students and 10 hospitals for residents. We assessed ambiguity tolerance using the Japanese version of the Tolerance of Ambiguity in Medical Students and Doctors scale. The outcome variable was empathy, measured using the Japanese translation of the Jefferson Scales of Empathy (JSE). RESULTS: Data from 100 medical students and 135 residents were analyzed. After adjustment for possible confounders, the factor scores of 'tolerance for things that are not black or white in medicine' showed a dose-dependent association with the JSE. There was no clear trend in the association between the total scores or other factor scores and empathy. CONCLUSION: This nationwide multicenter study showed that the factor scores of 'tolerance for things that are not black or white in medicine' were associated with empathy among medical trainees. Our findings may be helpful for developing interventions in the field of medical education to nurture empathy

Ambiguity · Ambiguity tolerance · Association (psychology) · Context (archaeology) · Cross-sectional study · Empathy · Family medicine · Medical education · Pathology · Psychiatry · Psychological intervention · Psychotherapist · Clinical Psychology · Clinical Reasoning and Diagnostic Skills · Empathy and Medical Education · Innovations in Medical Education · Medicine · Psychology · Social Psychology

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