Psychological characterization in medical students of a public macro-university Caracterización psicológica en alumnos de medicina de una macrouniversidad pública

Abstract

Several problems occurring during medical education and training have been detected as affecting the acquisition of skills and attitudes considered key for any health professional. Some of the most frequent conditions tend to include concentration difficulties, anxiety, aggressiveness and addictions. some factors conducive to these problems frequently include the nature and pressures associated with heavy academic workloads typical of medical training. the purpose of the present study was to examine the psychological stability and wellbeing of 2,033 first-year medical students from two successive admission periods at the school of Medicine of Mexico’s national university. Data on signs of distress were collected through the Wellbeing and everyday Behavior Questionnaire and the Beck depression inventory. A secondary purpose of the study was to identify specific areas requiring preventive attention such as counseling in order to address such problems as impulsivity, aggressiveness and anxiety, among many others. While women showed higher levels of anxiety in practically all areas of both instruments, both sexes showed very high levels of poor tolerance to academic-induced frustration.