Motivated to Work?
Dr Marilyn Powell PhD

Understanding and predicting human behaviour and subsequent performance constitutes a large part of organisational literature and at the heart of organisational behaviour lies human motivation. Work motivation, which has been previously demonstrated to be predictive of work performance, job satisfaction, organisational commitment and longevity in a role is applied to a new context in this study, that of the selection and training of future medical doctors.

The application of work motivations to the medical role is contextualised within the ongoing medical selection debate, where current approaches to recognising and selecting the best applicants to be future doctors are critically evaluated. Here, cognitive testing (including academic marks and aptitude testing) which is used as the primary method for medical selection, has been found to be moderately predictive of academic performance, but poorly predictive of clinical performance and later practitioner performance and satisfaction. Research efforts to further define personal attributes associated with good student outcomes have revealed a plethora of traits, with the Conscientiousness dimension of the ‘Big 5 traits’ achieving high levels of predictive validity. However, while a strong predictor of academic performance, it also has been unable to predict clinical performance in medical students. Therefore, while current selection methods have been demonstrated to be moderately effective, predictors of clinical performance and practitioner satisfaction are poorly covered in the research. Additionally, the medical literature reveals a significant gap in understanding and applying current motivation research to the prediction of medical student outcomes.

This study addressed the research question of whether specific clusters of work motivations may be predictive of clinical and academic performance outcomes and career choice satisfaction in medical students. It also trialled a work motivational screening instrument for its capability to identify complex sets of motivations associated with medical school performance and for its validity for use with both applicants to medical school and existing medical students.

The results of the study have demonstrated that specific clusters of work motivation patterns do exist in medical students which are able to predict both good and poor performance in clinical and academic areas and career choice satisfaction. Additionally, the instrument (inventory for Work Attitudes and Motivations) has been found to be a valid instrument to identify and measure work motivations in both medical school applicants and medical students.

The identified critical Work Motivations for each of the outcome areas are discussed and applied to medical selection, education and practice, including offering specific advice to medical educators on how to coach students in critical motivations that impact upon student outcomes. Overall, this study has demonstrated that a more targeted testing of specific motivations, shown to be associated with good and poor outcomes in the medical program, may further refine current medical selection procedures