Does empathy change during undergraduate medical education? – A meta-analysis*

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this meta-analysis was to synthesize the existing evidence examining how empathy changes during undergraduate medical education and assess whether different types of measures produce different results.

Method: Three electronic bibliographic databases were last searched on 28 November 2018. Quantitative studies including a measure of empathy in medical undergraduate students and a comparison of the results among the different years of study were included. All analyses were guided by Lipsey and Wilson and conducted using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software.

Results: The overall sample size for the twelve studies (n = 12) was 4906 participants. Results indicate a significant effect (g = 0.487, SE = 0.113, 95% CI = 0.265, 0.709), suggesting that there is moderate evidence that empathy scores changed. Studies using the Jefferson’s Scale for Physician Empathy (JSPE) reported higher effect sizes (g = 0.834, SE = 0.219, 95% CI = 0.406, 1.263), while the effect size for studies using other scales was smaller and non-significant (g = 0.099, SE = 0.052, 95% CI = −0.003, 0.201).

Conclusions: This review indicated significant evidence that self-ratings of empathy changed across the years of medical education. However, we need to be cautious because this effect was only significant when empathy was assessed using the JSPE.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of this article.

Glossary

Empathy: Is the capacity to understand or feel what another person is experiencing from within their frame of reference, that is, the capacity to place oneself in another’s position. There are many definitions for empathy that encompass a broad range of emotional states. Types of empathy include cognitive empathy, emotional empathy, and somatic empathy.

• Bellet and Maloney (1991)

• Rothschild and Rand (2006)

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Vasiliki Spatoula

Vasiliki Spatoula, MSc, is a PhD student in Medical School at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece.

Efharis Panagopoulou

Efharis Panagopoulou, PhD, is an Associate Professor of health psychology in the Medical School of Aristotle University in Greece.

Anthony Montgomery

Anthony Montgomery, PhD, is a Professor of Work and Organizational Psychology at the University of Macedonia, Thessaloniki, Greece.