Faculty Mentor(s)
Dr. Paul Pearson, Mathematics & Statistics; Dr. Mark Pearson, Mathematics & Statistics; Dr. Aaron Franzen, Sociology & Social Work
Document Type
Poster
Event Date
4-12-2024
Abstract
Many sociology studies have been published regarding the experiences and development of medical school students, but there is a gap in research observing undergraduate students on pre-health professions tracks. Specifically, studies have been published noting a significant decrease in the empathy of medical school students during their third year, but no research has been conducted to identify development patterns of these students during their undergraduate years. This study aims to identify groups of undergraduate students on pre-health professions tracks based on typologies formed from longitudinal survey responses, and also to identify any significant transitions between these groups over time. Because the survey response time frame included the COVID-19 pandemic, this experience of the COVID-19 pandemic added a natural experimental dimension to the data. Using our longitudinal models to compare the transitions between groups across different cohorts, we address whether the pandemic had a significant impact on the identity and empathy development of undergraduate pre-health students. To group our sample based on their survey responses we used latent class analysis, which categorized individuals based on their response pattern to questions regarding religion, political views, moral foundation, empathy, and demographics. Upon completing this analysis and comparing transitions across the discovered groups, we found significant differences in transitions between identity groups across the cohorts. The results suggest that the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the identity and empathy development of undergraduate pre-health and nursing students. Further research can be done to see if these potential variations in normal development have a significant impact on the identities and empathy levels of these individuals in the future.
Recommended Citation
Repository citation: Kapitula, Anya and Tyshka, Anna, "Identity Development Among Pre-Health Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic" (2024). 23rd Annual A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Celebration of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (2024). Paper 48.
https://digitalcommons.hope.edu/curca_23/48
April 12, 2024. Copyright © 2024 Hope College, Holland, Michigan.
Comments
This research was supported by the Frank and Dorothy Sherburne Mathematics Summer Research Fund and the Jay Folkert & Charles Steketee Mathematics Summer Research Fund.