Professional identity formation: The key contributors and dental students' concerns

Objectives This study aimed to explore the components of professional identity formation (PIF) and understand dental students' concerns toward their professional identity development so that research-informed recommendations can be made to improve dental professional programs. Methods This is a qualitative study. A total of 18 students of the whole graduating class (class size: 46) were interviewed about their progress through a newly designed curriculum specific for the dental students at a large public research university in Canada. The audio files were recorded, transcribed, and corrected by a research assistant. Using QSR International's NVivo (Version 12), the researchers of this study conducted a thematic analysis to generate overarching themes and extract the relevant components of PIF. Results Five themes emerged from the study as follows: (i) domain-specific self-efficacy, (ii) role modeling and mentoring, (iii) professional socialization with peers, (iv) learning environment (LE), and (v) reflection. We considered these to be the five key contributors to dental students' PIF. Conclusions Understanding the main concerns for students and improving the LE are critical in helping students form their professional identity. The findings of this qualitative study identified some important aspects of the dental curricula for educators to consider. These results can be used by future research studies to explore models for professional identity assessment tools that can aid in guiding students' professional identity development.

Automated summary

This qualitative study explored the components of professional identity formation among dental students, identifying five key contributors: domain-specific self-efficacy, role modeling and mentoring, professional socialization with peers, learning environment, and reflection. Understanding students' concerns and improving the learning environment are crucial for guiding professional identity development. Findings from this study can inform educators on important aspects of dental curricula and guide future research on professional identity assessment tools.