Spatial abilities of medical graduates and choice of residency programs

Anatomical Sciences Education

Volumn 8, Issue 2, 2015, Pages 111-119

  Langlois, Jean ^a,b   Wells, George A ^c,d   Lecourtois, Marc ^a   Bergeron, Germain ^a   Yetisir, Elizabeth ^d   Martin, Marcel ^b  

^a CENTRE HOSPITALIER UNIVERSITAIRE DE SHERBROOKE   (Canada)

^b UNIVERSITÉ DE SHERBROOKE   (Canada)

^c UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA   (Canada)

^d UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA HEART INSTITUTE   (Canada)

Author keywords

Gross anatomy education; Medical education; Mental rotations test; Residency education; Residency selection; Spatial abilities; Spatial orientation; Technical skills; Visualization

Indexed keywords

ADULT; ANATOMY; CANADA; DECISION MAKING; EDUCATION; FEMALE; HUMAN; MALE; MEDICAL EDUCATION; MEDICAL STUDENT; NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL TEST; PROCEDURES; PROSPECTIVE STUDY; PSYCHOLOGY; SPATIAL BEHAVIOR; SPECIALIZATION; YOUNG ADULT;

ADULT; ANATOMY; CAREER CHOICE; EDUCATION, MEDICAL, UNDERGRADUATE; FEMALE; HUMANS; INTERNSHIP AND RESIDENCY; MALE; NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL TESTS; PROSPECTIVE STUDIES; QUEBEC; SPATIAL BEHAVIOR; SPECIALIZATION; STUDENTS, MEDICAL; YOUNG ADULT;

EID: 84923779333     PISSN: 19359772     EISSN: 19359780     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1002/ase.1453     Document Type: Article

References (81)

1. Ackerman PL. 1988. Determinants of individual differences during skill acquisition: Cognitive abilities and information processing. J Exp Psychol Gen 117:288-318.
2. Ahlborg L, Hedman L, Murkes D, Westman B, Kjellin A, Felländer-Tsai L, Enochsson L. 2011. Visuospatial ability correlates with performance in simulated gynecological laparoscopy. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 157:73-77.
3. Ahlborg L, Hedman L, Rasmussen C, Felländer-Tsai L, Enochsson L. 2012. Non-technical factors influence laparoscopic simulator performance among OBGYN residents. Gynecol Surg 9:415-420.
4. Anastakis DJ, Hamstra SJ, Matsumoto ED. 2000. Visual-spatial abilities and surgical training. Am J Surg 179:469-471.
5. Arora H, Uribe J, Ralph W, Zeltsan M, Cuellar H, Gallagher A, Fried MP. 2005. Assessment of construct validity of the endoscopy sinus surgery simulator. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 131:217-221.
6. Boom-Saad Z, Langenecker SA, Bieliauskas LA, Graver CJ, O'Neill JR, Caveney AF, Greenfield LJ, Minter RM. 2008. Surgeons outperform controls on neuropsychologic tests, but age-related decay on skills persists. Am J Surg 195:205-209.
7. Brandt MG, Davies ET. 2006. Visual-spatial ability, learning modality and surgical knot tying. Can J Surg 49:412-416.
8. Brandt MG, Wright ED. 2005. Medical student career choice and mental rotations ability. Clin Invest Med 28:112-117.
9. Clem D, Anderson S, Donaldson J, Hdeib M. 2010. An exploratory study of spatial ability and student achievement in sonography. J Diag Med Sonogr 24:163-170.
10. Clem DW, Donaldson J, Curs B, Anderson S, Hdeib M. 2013. Role of spatial ability as a probable ability determinant in skill acquisition for sonographic scanning. J Ultrasound Med 32:519-528.
11. Corry CA. 2011. The future of recruitment and selection in radiology. Is there a role for assessment of basic visuospatial skills? Clin Radiol 66:481-483.
12. Fitts PM, Posner MI. 1967. Human Performance. 1st Ed. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole Publishing Co. 162 p.
13. Francis NK, Hanna GB, Cresswell AB, Carter FJ, Cuschieri A. 2001. The performance of master surgeons on standard aptitude testing. Am J Surg 182:30-33.
14. Gallagher AG, Leonard G, Traynor OJ. 2009. Role and feasibility of psychomotor and dexterity testing in selection for surgical training. ANZ J Surg 79:108-113.
15. Garg A, Norman GR, Spero L, Maheshwari P. 1999a. Do virtual computer models hinder anatomy learning? Acad Med 74:S87-S89.
16. Garg A, Norman G, Spero L, Taylor I. 1999b. Learning anatomy: Do new computer models improve spatial understanding? Med Teach 21:519-522.
17. Garg AX, Norman G, Sperotable L. 2001. How medical students learn spatial anatomy. Lancet 357:363-364.
18. Garg AX, Norman GR, Eva KW, Spero L, Sharan S. 2002. Is there any virtue of virtual reality?: The minor role of multiples orientations in learning anatomy from computers. Acad Med 77:S97-S99.
19. Gibbons RD, Baker RJ, Skinner DB. 1986. Field articulation testing: A predictor of technical skills in surgical residents. J Surg Res 41:53-57.
20. Grace DM. 1989. Aptitude testing in surgery. Can J Surg 6:396-397.
21. Gray SA, Deem LP. 2002. Predicting student performance in preclinical technique courses using the theory of ability determinants of skilled performance. J Dent Educ 66:721-727.
22. Gray SA, Deem LP, Straja SR. 2002. Are traditional cognitive tests useful in predicting clinical success? J Dent Educ 66:1241-1245.
23. Guillot A, Champely S, Batier C, Thiriet P, Collet C. 2007. Relationship between spatial abilities and functional anatomy learning. Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Prac 12:491-507.
24. Hamstra SJ. 2006. Predicting the technical competence of surgical residents. Clin Orthop Relat Res 449:62-66.
25. Harris CJ, Herbert M, Steele RJC. 1994. Psychomotor skills of surgical trainees compared with those of different medical specialists. Br J Surg 81:382-383.
26. Hassan I, Gerdes B, Koller M, Dick B, Hellwig D, Rothmund M, Zielke A. 2007. Spatial perception predicts laparoscopic skills on virtual reality laparoscopy simulator. Child Nerv Syst 23:685-689.
27. Hedman L, Ström P, Andersson P, Kjellin T, Wredmark T, Felländer-Tsai L. 2006. High-level visual-spatial ability for novices correlates with performance in a visual-spatial complex surgical simulator task. Surg Endosc 20:1275-1280.
28. Hedman L, Klingberg T, Enochsson L, Kjellin A, Felländer-Tsai L. 2007. Visual working memory influences the performance in virtual image-guided surgical intervention. Surg Endosc 21:2044-2050.
29. Hegarty M, Kozhevnikov M. 1999. Types of visual-spatial representations and mathematical problem solving. J Educ Psychol 91:684-689.
30. Hegarty M, Keehner M, Cohen C, Montello Y, Lippa Y. 2007. The role of spatial cognition in medicine: Applications for selecting and training Professionals. In: Allen GL (Editor). Applied Spatial Cognition from Research to Cognitive Technology. 1st Ed. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. p 285-315.
31. Hegarty M, Keehner M, Khooshabeh P, Montello DR. 2009. How spatial abilities enhance, and are enhanced by, dental education. Learn Individ Differ 19:61-70.
32. Helle L, Nivala M, Kronqvist P, Ericsson A, Lehtinen E. 2010. Do prior knowledge, personality and visual perceptual ability predict student performance in microscopic pathology? Med Educ 44:621-629.
33. Hoyek N, Collet C, Rastello O, Fargier P, Thiriet P, Guillot A. 2009. Enhancement of mental rotation abilities and its effect on anatomy learning. Teach Learn Med 21:201-206.
34. Hsu JC, Nelson BL. 1998. Multiple comparisons in the general linear model. J Comput Graph Stat 7:23-41.
35. Jordan K, Wüstengerg T, Heinze H-J, Peters M, Jäncke L. 2002. Women and men exhibit different cortical activation patterns during mental rotation tasks. Neuropsychologia 40:2397-2408.
36. Jungmann F, Gockel I, Hecht H, Kuhr K, Räsänen J, Sihvo E, Lang H. 2011. Impact of perceptual ability and mental imagery training on simulated laparoscopic knot-tying in surgical novices using a Nissen fundoplication. Scand J Surg 100:78-85.
37. Keehner M, Tendick F, Meng MV, Anwar HP, Hegarty M, Stoller ML, Duh QY. 2004. Spatial ability, experience, and skill in laparoscopic surgery. Am J Surg 188:71-75.
38. Keehner M, Lippa Y, Montello DR, Tendick F, Hegarty M. 2006. Learning a spatial skill for surgery: How the contributions of abilities change with practice. Appl Cogn Psychol 20:487-503.
39. Kozhevnikov M, Hegarty M, Mayer RE. 2002. Revising the visualizer-verbalizer dimension: Evidence of two types of visualizers. Cogn Instr 20:47-77.
40. Langlois J, Wells GA, Lecourtois M, Bergeron G, Yetisir E, Martin M. 2009. Spatial abilities in an elective course of applied anatomy after a problem-based learning curriculum. Anat Sci Educ 2:107-112.
41. Langlois J, Wells GA, Lecourtois M, Bergeron G, Yetisir E, Martin M. 2013. Sex differences in spatial abilities of medical graduates entering their residency programs. Anat Sci Educ 6:368-375.
42. Levinson AJ, Weaver B, Garside S, McGinn H, Norman GR. 2007. Virtual reality and brain anatomy: A randomised trial of e-learning instructional designs. Med Educ 41:495-501.
43. Lufler RS, Zumwalt AC, Romney CA, Hoagland TM. 2012. Effect of visual-spatial ability on medical students performance in a gross anatomy course. Anat Sci Educ 5:3-9.
44. Luursema J-M, Vervey WB, Kommers PA, Geelkerken RH, Vos HJ. 2006. Optimizing conditions for computer-assisted anatomical learning. Interact Comput 18:1123-1138.
45. Luursema J-M, Vervey WB, Kommers PA, Annema J-H. 2008. The role of strereopsis in virtual anatomical learning. Interact Comput 20:455-460.
46. Luursema J-M, Buzink SN, Verwey WB, Jakimowicz JJ. 2010. Visuo-spatial ability in colonoscopy simulator training. Adv Health Sci Educ Theory Pract 15:685-694.
47. Maccoby EE, Jacklin CN. 1974. The Psychology of Sex Differences. Vol. I/Text. 1st Ed. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. 416 p.
48. Maylor EA, Reimers S, Choi J, Collaer ML, Peters M, Silverman I. 2007. Gender and sexual orientation differences in cognition across adulthood: Age is kinder to women than to men regardless of sexual orientation. Arch Sex Behav 36:235-249.
49. McGee MG. 1979. Human spatial abilities: Psychometric studies and environmental, genetic, hormonal, and neurological influences. Psychol Bull 86:889-918.
50. Murdoch JR, Bainbridge LC, Fisher SG, Webster MH. 1994. Can a simple test of visuo-motor skill predict the performance of microsurgeons? J R Coll Surg Edinb 39:150-152.
51. Nguyen N, Nelson AJ, Wilson TD. 2012. Computer visualizations: Factors that influence spatial anatomy comprehension. Anat Sci Educ 5:98-108.
52. Nilsson T, Hedman L, Ahlqvist J. 2007. Visual-spatial ability and interpretation of three-dimensional information in radiographs. Dentomaxillofac Radiol 36:86-91.
53. Nugent E, Hseino H, Boyle E, Mehigan B, Ryan K, Traynor O, Neary P. 2012. Assessment of the role of aptitude in the acquisition of advanced laparoscopic surgical skill sets. Int J Colorectal Dis 27:1207-1214.
54. Peters M, Laeng B, Latham K, Jackson M, Zaiyouna R, Richardson C. 1995. A redrawn Vandenberg and Kuse mental rotations test: Different versions and factors that affect performance. Brain Cogn 28:39-58.
55. Peters M, Manning JT, Reimers S. 2007. The effects of sex, sexual orientation, and digit ratio (2D:4D) on mental rotation performance. Arch Sex Behav 36:251-260.
56. Provo J, Lamar C, Newby T. 2002. Using a cross-section to train veterinary students to visualize anatomical structures in three dimensions. J Res Sci Teach 39:10-34.
57. Ranney RR, Wilson MB, Bennett RB. 2005. Evaluation of applicants to predoctoral dental education programs: Review of the literature. J Dent Educ 69:1095-1106.
58. Risucci DA, Tortolani AJ. 1990. A methodological framework for the design of research on the evaluation of residents. Acad Med 65:36-41.
59. Risucci D, Geiss A, Gellman L, Pinard B, Rosser JC. 2000. Experience and visual perception in resident acquisition of laparoscopic skills. Curr Surg 57:368-372.
60. Risucci D, Geiss A, Gellman L, Pinard B, Rosser J. 2001. Surgeon-specific factors in the acquisition of laparoscopic surgical skills. Am J Surg 181:289-293.
61. Ritter EM, McClusky DA, Gallagher AG, Enochsson L, Smith CD. 2006. Perceptual, visuospatial, and psychomotor abilities correlate with duration of training required on a virtual-reality flexible endoscopy simulator. Am J Surg 192:379-384.
62. Rochford K. 1985. Spatial learning disabilities and underachievement among university students. Med Educ 19:13-26.
63. Romano PE. 2002. Measuring surgical skill and proclivity in ophthalmology residency training program applicants using the American Dental Association Dental Admission (sample) Test (DAT). Binocul Vis Strabismus Q 17:143-146.
64. Rosenthal R, Hamel C, Oertli D, Demartines N, Gantert WA. 2010. Performance on a virtual reality angled laparoscope task correlates with spatial ability of trainees. Indian J Surg 72:327-330.
65. Schlickum M, Hedman L, Enochsson L, Henningsohn L, Kjellin A, Felländer-Tsai L. 2011. Surgical simulation tasks challenge visual working memory and visual-spatial ability differently. World J Surg 35:710-715.
66. Schueneman AL, Pickleman J, Hesslein R, Freeark RJ. 1984. Neuropsychologic predictors of operative skill among general surgery residents. Surgery 96:288-295.
67. Smith WL, Berbaum KS. 1991. Improving resident selection. Discrimination by perceptual abilities. Invest Radiol 26:910-912.
68. Steele RJC, Walder C, Herbert M. 1992. Psychomotor testing and the ability to perform an anastomosis in junior surgical trainees. Br J Surg 79:1065-1067.
69. Stull AT, Hegarty M, Mayer RE. 2009. Getting a handle on learning anatomy with interactive three-dimensional graphics. J Educ Psychol 101:803-816.
70. Tansley P, Kakar S, Withey S, Butler P. 2007. Visuospatial and technical ability in the selection and assessment of higher surgical trainees in the London deanery. Ann R Coll Surg Engl 89:591-595.
71. Thomsen T, Hugdahl K, Ersland L, Barndon R, Lundervold A, Smievoll AI, Roscher BE, Sunberg H. 2000. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study of sex differences in a mental rotation task. Med Sci Monit 6:1186-1196.
72. Thompson WL, Kosslyn SM. 2000. Neural systems activated during visual mental imagery a review and meta-analyses. In: Toga AW, Mazziotta JC (Editors). Brain Mapping: The Systems. 1st Ed. San Diego, CA: Academic Press. p 535-560.
73. Vandenberg SG, Kuse AR. 1978. Mental rotations, a group test of three-dimensional spatial visualization. Percept Mot Skills 47:599-604.
74. Vorstenbosch MA, Klaassen TP, Donders AR, Kooloos JG, Bolhuis SM, Laan RF. 2013. Learning anatomy enhances spatial ability. Anat Sci Educ 6:257-262.
75. Voyer D, Voyer S, Bryden MP. 1995. Magnitude of sex differences in spatial abilities: A meta-analysis and consideration of critical variables. Psychol Bull 117:250-270.
76. Wanzel KR, Hamstra SJ, Anastakis DJ, Matsumoto ED, Cusimano MD. 2002. Effect of visual-spatial ability on learning of spatially-complex surgical skills. Lancet 359:230-231.
77. Wanzel KR, Hamstra SJ, Caminiti MF, Anastakis DJ, Grober ED, Reznick RK. 2003. Visual-spatial ability correlates with efficiency of hand motion and successful surgical performance. Surgery 134:750-757.
78. Wanzel KR, Anastakis DJ, McAndrews MP, Grober ED, Sidhu RS, Taylor K, Mikulis DJ, Hamstra SJ. 2006. Visual-spatial ability and fMRI cortical activation in surgery residents. Am J Surg 1993:507-510.
79. Weiss E, Siedentopf CM, Hofer A, Deisenhammer EA, Hoptman MJ, Kremser C, Golaszewski S, Felber S, Fleischhacker WW, Delazer M. 2003. Sex differences in brain activation pattern during a visuo-spatial cognitive task: A functional magnetic resonance imaging study in healthy volunteers. Neurosci Lett 344:169-172.
80. Westman B, Ritter EM, Kjellin A, Törkvist L, Wredmark T, Felländer-Tsai L, Enochsson L. 2006. Visuospatial abilities correlate with performance of senior endoscopy specialist in simulated colonoscopy. J Gastrointest Surg 10:593-599.
81. Wilson JR, De Fries JC, McClearn GE, Vandenberg SG, Johnson RC, Rashad MN. 1975. Cognitive abilities: Use of family data as a control to assess sex and age differences in two ethnic groups. Int J Aging Hum Dev 6:261-276.