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Abstract
Background: Current research mainly employs cross-sectional designs to examine changes in medical students’ attitudes towards complementary and alternative medicine (CAM).
Aims: This paper reports the findings of a longitudinal study to further validate the Integrative Medicine Attitude Questionnaire (IMAQ) and examine changes in medical students’ attitudes over 3 years.
Methods: A total of 154 medical students from four schools in three countries completed a modified version of the IMAQ during their first (T1) and fourth year (T2).
Results: We established the validity of a three-factor model for the IMAQ: (1) attitudes towards holism; (2) attitudes towards the effectiveness of CAM therapies, and (3) attitudes towards introspection and the doctor–patient relationship. We found that IMAQ factor scores did not differ significantly from T1 to T2, emphasizing the relative stability in attitudes across time. Various student characteristics were significantly associated with IMAQ factor scores at T2: age, gender, CAM use, CAM education and school; and two variables (gender and CAM use) predicted changes in medical students’ attitudes between T1 and T2.
Conclusions: We urge medical educators to continue exploring medical students’ attitude changes towards CAM and we provide examples of what further research is needed.
Notes
Notes
1. Health sciences students are taught a common foundation programme in year 1 of the curriculum at Auckland. Although Auckland medical students are in their second year of study, this second year equates with the first year at the other study institutions, so we refer to Auckland students as first-year medical students.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Charlotte E. Rees
All authors contributed to the design of the project. With the exception of ID, all authors collected T2 data. CR and ID analysed the data. CR wrote the first draft of the paper and edited it with AW. All authors edited and approved the final version.
Andy M. Wearn
All authors contributed to the design of the project. With the exception of ID, all authors collected T2 data. CR and ID analysed the data. CR wrote the first draft of the paper and edited it with AW. All authors edited and approved the final version.
Ian Dennis
All authors contributed to the design of the project. With the exception of ID, all authors collected T2 data. CR and ID analysed the data. CR wrote the first draft of the paper and edited it with AW. All authors edited and approved the final version.
Hakima Amri
All authors contributed to the design of the project. With the exception of ID, all authors collected T2 data. CR and ID analysed the data. CR wrote the first draft of the paper and edited it with AW. All authors edited and approved the final version.
Sheila M. Greenfield
All authors contributed to the design of the project. With the exception of ID, all authors collected T2 data. CR and ID analysed the data. CR wrote the first draft of the paper and edited it with AW. All authors edited and approved the final version.