Browsing by Author "Beran, Tanya Nathalie"

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    Assessment of Conformity: Instrument Development
    (2018-06-04) Al Harbi, Nouf Sulaiman; Beran, Tanya Nathalie; Oddone Paolucci, Elizabeth; Drefs, Michelle A.; Altabbaa, Ghazwan; Davidson, Sandra; Goldsworthy, Sandra
    Current educational systems, including medical programs, incorporate learning in groups. However, subtle social factors functioning within these groups can influence learning and professional development. Thus, these social factors should be considered by both educators and learners. One social factor that has gained the attention of medical educators is conformity. Conformity is submission to the pressure of the group or its members and is represented by changing one’s behaviour, attitudes or beliefs to align with those of the group. It is associated with peer pressure and hierarchy whereby the need to be accepted within a professional milieu is paramount. Hence, conformity could prevent learners from actively engaging (e.g., asking questions) in education. Moreover, conformity has been associated with learners reporting feeling overwhelmed, and it has contributed to information mismanagement, inaccurate decision-making, and learners inefficiently using health care resources or compromising their role as patient advocates. The eventual outcome is deterioration in the provision of health care. The aim of this study was to create an instrument that enables both learners and educators to track verbal and nonverbal behaviours that are indicative of conformity. An observational cross-sectional design was used in three phases in this study. In Phase I, an initial conformity instrument was created based on behaviours identified in the communication, social psychology, and medical education literature and through discussion with conformity experts. The researcher then used this instrument in Phase II to code archival videos of the conformity behaviours of medical and nursing students from a prior study on conformity. Finally, in Phase III the instrument was used in real-time simulation sessions to record the behaviours of medical residents and students who were given the challenge of managing a patient case. This case was designed to expose the medical residents and students to pressure that would potentially influence their clinical decision making. Also, this study examined whether conformity as a construct is uni- or multidimensional. The study results showed that the instrument’s scores did not differentiate conforming from nonconforming behaviours. Also, the principal component analysis generated uninterpretable results, suggesting that the behaviours measured are not multidimensional. Participants also shared their perspectives about conformity, and revealed that they viewed conformity as a natural dynamic in their daily practice and could potentially yield to the pressure of the group or their senior colleagues when faced with a conflict. The implications for teaching and practice are discussed. It is also recommended that further research examine conformity in clinical settings to determine if the results obtained in clinical simulations are consistent with practice.
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    Feeling Red about Bullying! An Application of the Stress Process Model to the Relationship among Bullying, Emotional Agitation, Peer Social Support, and Self-Esteem
    (2018-03-22) Dittrick, Crystal June; Russell-Mayhew, Shelly K.; Beran, Tanya Nathalie; Bierman, Alex E; Cairns, Sharon L.
    Bullying is a pervasive problem worldwide. Children and adolescents who are victimized, perpetrate bullying, or both experience more negative consequences to their mental health than those who are not involved. It is important to understand the students involved in bullying, as well as the process through which bullying exerts its effect. The stress process model is a general orienting framework for understanding the influence that bullying can have on mental health (i.e., emotional agitation or anxiety/anger). This model suggests that the personal resources of peer social support and self-esteem may influence the stress process by acting as either mediators, moderators, or both (i.e., structural amplification). The dual purpose of this study was to examine student involvement in bullying as well as apply the stress process model to the experiences of a nationally representative random sample of 1001 Canadian youth aged 10 to 17. First, Latent Class Analysis (LCA) was used to identify groupings of students involved in bullying. Four classes emerged across four forms of bullying (physical, verbal, social, cyber) including students who 1) primarily bullied others, 2) were primarily victimized, 3) both bullied others and were victimized, as well as those who 4) did not engage in bullying (i.e., uninvolved). Second, using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM), the stress process model was applied to the relationship between bullying and emotional agitation. The personal resources of peer social support and self-esteem were examined as both mediators and moderators. The results support a partial mediation model: peer social support and self-esteem were pathways through which bullying involvement exerted an effect on anxiety and anger. Although moderation was not supported, a main effect of peer social support and self-esteem was found. Effectively, these personal resources were found to have a positive influence on students' experiences of anxiety and anger, regardless of their involvement in bullying. The process of structural amplification was not supported. Taken together, these results provide some support for the application of the stress process model to the relationship between bullying involvement and emotional agitation. Implications for counselling psychologists as well as the field of bullying prevention, intervention, and research are discussed.
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    An Investigation of the Relationship among Conformity, Communication, and Anxiety in Medical Education
    (2019-03-16) Al Baz, Noof Khalid; Beran, Tanya Nathalie; Oddone-Paolucci, Elizabeth; Altabbaa, Ghazwan; Drefs, Michelle A.
    Health care members can face challenging situations when learning and working within multidisciplinary teams, such as when they are confronted with information that is contrary to their own understanding and knowledge. Consequently, some medical team members could feel pressure to conform to peers if they are required to make decisions. Over the years, many researchers in the field of psychology have defined that conformity occurs when an individual follows a course of action that is socially acceptable or in agreement with a majority of group members, even when this actions seems incorrect. In examining why group members might conform, some studies have suggested that poor communication and anxiety may be reasons for conformity behaviour; however, this possibility has not yet been clearly examined. The goal of this study was to investigate the relationship among learners’ communication competency, anxiety, and conformity behaviours in simulation exercises. Thirty male and female participants of various ages, medical specialties, and positions (i.e., medical clerks and residents) were observed in a simulation lab at Rockyview General Hospital in Calgary, Canada. Three measures were used in this study to observe the participants’ behaviours: A List of Potential Conformity Behaviours (LPCB), the Non-Technical Skills (NOTECHS) system, and the State Anxiety Inventory (SAI). Participants were also interviewed to explore their reasons for conforming. The study results showed that individuals with higher leadership and managerial skills exhibited more verbal and non-verbal behaviours. The anxiety levels of participants were found to be unrelated to their verbal and non-verbal behaviours, but changes in anxiety levels were associated with more verbal behaviours. Also, no relationship was found among the communication skills of participants and their anxiety levels. Finally, no link was established among conformity status, communication skill, and anxiety. Many participants also justified their feelings of pressure to conform during the study’s simulation exercises and also in clinic as related to medical hierarchies and their own knowledge level. Additionally, some medical situations, such as dealing with emergencies and participants’ concerns about their image in front of other team members, may create pressure to conform. Although this study’s results showed no significant relationship among conformity, communication, and anxiety, it enhances our understanding of the complexity of studying the relationship among different constructs