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Attitudes towards Interprofessional Education among Medical and Nursing Students: the Role of Professional Identification and Intergroup Contact

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Abstract

This research analyses the effect of professional identification and intergroup contact on attitudes towards interprofessional education (IPE) among medical and nursing students. Three hundred fifty-eight nursing and medical students were surveyed measuring attitudes towards IPE and professional identification. Moreover, students were asked to report the hours of practical training that they had already done, as measure of intergroup contact. Results indicated that ingroup identification increased attitude towards IPE among nursing students, while it decreased attitude among medical students. Intergroup contact, instead, had not significant effect. Results are discussed on the basis of social identity theory and status differences between professional groups.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria of Parma, via Don R. Tonani, 17, 43125, Parma, Italy

    Alfonso Sollami

  2. Department of Humanities, Social Sciences and Cultural Industries, University of Parma, 43121, Parma, PR, Italy

    Luca Caricati & Tiziana Mancini

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  1. Alfonso Sollami
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  2. Luca Caricati
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Correspondence to Alfonso Sollami.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Sollami, A., Caricati, L. & Mancini, T. Attitudes towards Interprofessional Education among Medical and Nursing Students: the Role of Professional Identification and Intergroup Contact. Curr Psychol 37, 905–912 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-017-9575-y

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