The association of training supervisor personality traits and their teaching efficacy as perceived by tertiary hospital residents

Supervisors’ personality traits may influence their teaching effectiveness in clinical settings, yet this relationship remains underexplored particularly in structured residency programs and non-Western contexts. Major challenges include the lack of validated dual-measurement frameworks and limited research on how traits such as conscientiousness or agreeableness directly shape trainee perceptions. This study explored the impact of supervising faculty members’ personal traits on the perceived effectiveness of clinical teaching by Pediatric Saudi residency trainees. A cross-sectional, quantitative correlation study was conducted at the Maternity and Children Hospital. Participants included 60 pediatric residents and 48 pediatric consultants. Supervisors completed the Big Five Inventory (BFI), while residents evaluated teaching performance using the modified System for Evaluation of Teaching Qualities (mSETQ). A total of 257 resident evaluations were analyzed. Pearson correlation coefficients were computed to examine associations between personality traits and teaching domains. No statistically significant relationships was any of the Big Five personality traits and the mSETQ subscales (e.g., Conscientiousness and Feedback: r = −.262, p =.072; Neuroticism and Self-Directed Learning: r =.246, p =.092). However, male clinical consultants received significantly higher teaching rating than their female counterparts, and younger faculty with fewer years of experience were perceived as more influential across many teaching domains. While personality traits showed no strong or significant association with teaching effectiveness, results suggest a potential influence of Conscientiousness and Neuroticism on specific teaching behaviors. These findings indicate that other contextual or behavioral factors likely play a larger role in shaping residents’ learning experiences. It is recommended that faculty development should focus more on improving teaching strategies rather than targeting personality traits. Further research using longitudinal designs and multi-source evaluations is recommended to validate and expand on these results

Big Five personality traits · Management · Medical education · Personality · Psychotherapist · Supervisor · Clinical Psychology · Education, Leadership, and Health Research · Health and Well-being Studies · Innovations in Medical Education · Medicine · Psychology · Social Psychology