Krstić Courtney, Tulloch André, Krstić Lazar, Agius Steven, Warren Alistair, Doody Gillian
School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, B86, Medical School, QMC, Nottingham, NG7 2UH, UK.
BMC Med Educ. 2025 Sep 26;25(1):1266. doi: 10.1186/s12909-025-07580-2.
Widening Participation initiatives aim to attract students from non-traditional backgrounds to study medicine; students from diverse backgrounds will be better equipped to cater to the needs of a diverse population. But medical students are moulded by our expectations of how a doctor should think, feel, and act, and this may fundamentally alter their behaviours, attitudes, and tendencies (habitus).
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 students and 5 family members who came from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Bourdieu’s habitus was used as a theoretical framework. Interviews were analysed using narrative analysis.
Five core narratives were identified. ‘Outsiders’ have poor social integration prior to and at medical school. Those with ‘Enduring Identity’ narratives have strong social networks outside of medical school. ‘Pre-socialised’ students have experiences which prepare them for the middle-class culture of medical school, and ‘Encouraged Upward Mobility’ describes those who are strongly guided by their parents’ desire for middle-class status. Finally, those with ‘Personal Growth’ narrative describe a transformational experience, adopting new behaviours, values and tastes.
The extent of habitus transformation in students from low socioeconomic backgrounds varied. Financial constraints, not drinking alcohol, and being on the gateway course all discouraged habitus transformation. Further research could explore whether this affects their interactions and abilities to empathise with patients from similar backgrounds.
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12909-025-07580-2.
扩大参与计划旨在吸引非传统背景的学生学习医学；来自不同背景的学生将更有能力满足多样化人群的需求。但是医学生是由我们对医生应如何思考、感受和行动的期望塑造的，这可能会从根本上改变他们的行为、态度和倾向（习性）。
对16名来自社会经济背景较低的学生和5名家庭成员进行了半结构化访谈。布迪厄的习性被用作理论框架。采用叙事分析法对访谈进行分析。
确定了五个核心叙事。“局外人”在医学院之前和就读医学院时社会融合度较差。那些有“持久身份”叙事的人在医学院之外有强大的社交网络。“预社会化”学生有一些经历，这些经历使他们为医学院的中产阶级文化做好准备，而“鼓励向上流动”描述的是那些受到父母对中产阶级地位渴望强烈引导的人。最后，那些有“个人成长”叙事的人描述了一种转变经历，采用了新的行为、价值观和品味。
社会经济背景较低的学生习性转变程度各不相同。经济限制、不饮酒以及就读入门课程都不利于习性转变。进一步的研究可以探讨这是否会影响他们与来自类似背景患者的互动和共情能力。
在线版本包含可在10.1186/s12909-025-07580-2获取的补充材料。
