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. 2023 Oct 6;23(1):738.
doi: 10.1186/s12909-023-04627-0.

Assessment of professional identity formation: a transcultural validation of the professional identity essay for brazilian portuguese

Gabrielle Leite Silveira  1   2 , Verna Monson  3 , Paula Cristina Eiras Poço  4   5 , Ahmed Haydar  5 , Sigisfredo Luis Brenelli  4   5 , Fabiana Moreira Passos Succi  4 , Guilherme de Menezes Succi  4 , Milton de Arruda Martins  5 , Patrícia Zen Tempski  5
Affiliations

Assessment of professional identity formation: a transcultural validation of the professional identity essay for brazilian portuguese

Gabrielle Leite Silveira et al. BMC Med Educ. .

Abstract

Introduction: Professional identity formation (PIF) is recognized worldwide as an outcome of medical education grounded in the psychology of adult development and the literature on medical professionalism. However, instruments to assess and support PIF are scarce. The Professional Identity Essay (PIE) is an open-ended question assessment of PIF that elicits short narrative responses from learners and that can be analyzed to provide formative feedback and an overall stage of development. In this study, our aim was to translate and adapt the PIE to Brazilian Portuguese.

Methods: We followed a systematic procedure for the translation and cross-cultural adaptation of the instrument. A pilot study was conducted with medical students from the University of São Paulo. After providing individual formative feedback, we administered an online questionnaire to the Brazilian students to better understand the consequences of using the PIE. Content analyses of qualitative data were performed, we employ manifest content analysis, and the categories of analysis emerged from the participants' speeches.

Results: Students found the instrument's questions easy to interpret and self-reflective. It also gave students the opportunity to consider their PIF. The PIE was perceived as reliable and brought more awareness of the students' own processes in addition to a sense of capability to foster their own development. In the same way, the students emphasized the importance of being helped in this process.

Conclusion: We found sufficient evidence of the validity of the PIE in terms of content, face validity, and consequences of use. The PIE enhances self-assurance in PIF through formative assessment and is sensitive to different cultures, making it a potential tool for educators.

Keywords: Assessment; Educational strategies; Medical professionalism; Professionalism.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Translation process schema
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Feelings that arose after the pilot PIE feedback report
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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