Iranian Journal of Medical Education

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Introduction: Academic self-efficacy refers to an individual's belief in his abilities to achieve educational goals and activities, which its formation is affected by many factors. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between psychological wellbeing, family cohesion, and spiritual health among students of Kharazmi University. Methods: In this descriptive correlation study during 2013-2014 academic years, 343 students studying at Kharazmi University were selected through cluster sampling. The data was collected through, Ryff’s Psychological Well-Being Questionnaires, Fischer’s Family Organized Cohesiveness Scale, Palutzian and Ellison’s Spiritual Health Questionnaires and Owen and Froman`s Academic Self-efficacy Questionnaires. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics tests, Pearson correlation coefficient test, multiple linear regression and path analysis. Results: The Pearson correlation coefficient test showed a significant positive relationship between academic self-efficacy and psychological wellbeing (r=0.371), family cohesion (r=0.351) and spiritual health (r=0.468) (P<0.01). The results of linear regression analysis indicated that the variables like psychological wellbeing family cohesion and spiritual health were able to express 0.28 percent of academic self-efficacy variance among the students. Moreover, the results of path analysis showed that the predictor variables affected academic self-efficacy both directly and indirectly. Conclusion: The findings of the study support that as predictor variables psychological wellbeing, family cohesion, and spiritual health are able to predict academic self-efficacy among students. So it seems necessary to provide training courses for developing self-efficacy and academic self-efficacy beliefs with regard to individual differences in terms of psychological wellbeing, family cohesion, and spiritual health.

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Introduction: Academic self-efficacy refers to learners’ belief in their abilities in academic process, whose realization is affected by many factors. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between academic self-efficacy and perceived stress, coping strategies and perceived social support among the students of University of Guilan. Methods: This descriptive-correlational study was performed on all students of faculty of humanities in University of Guilan in 2014-15 academic years. The sample consisted of 335 students who were selected through cluster sampling. Data collection tools were Owen & Froman’s Academic Self-efficacy Questionnaire, Cohen Perceived Stress Scale, Endler & Parker’s Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations and Vaux et al Perceived Social Support Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics tests, Pearson Correlation coefficient, and Multiple Linear Regression. Results: The Pearson Correlation showed a significant positive correlation (P<0.01) between academic self-efficacy and perceived social support (r=0.518) and problem-oriented coping strategies (r=0.421). It also showed a significant negative correlation (P<0.01) between academic self-efficacy and perceived stress (r=-0.574), emotion-oriented coping (r=-0.364) and avoidance-oriented coping (r=-0.364). Stepwise regression analysis indicated that the predictor variables such as perceived stress, perceived social support and problem-oriented coping were able to significantly explain 0.39 of academic self-efficacy variance among the students. Conclusion: The findings support the importance of perceived stress, perceived social support and problem-oriented coping in predicting academic self-efficacy of students. Therefore, training courses seem to be useful in developing self-efficacy beliefs and stress management.

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Introduction: Identifying the source of stress is essential to design tailored programs for promoting mental health of students. Medical Student Stressor Questionnaire (MSSQ) is an instrument to assess the source of stress in medical students. The aim of the present study was to determine the validity and reliability of the Persian version of the Medical Student Stressor Questionnaire.
Methods: This study was a methodological survey with a descriptive, cross-sectional design and was conducted in all medical universities of Tehran in 2016-17. The questionnaire was first back translated from English to Persian. The final Persian version of the questionnaire was completed by 200 fifth- to seventh-year medical students and fourth-year midwifery and nursing students. Exploratory factor analysis was used to assess construct validity, and confirmatory factor analysis was used to determine the number of factors and fitness of the model. The reliability of the instrument was assessed by internal consistency. Test-retest was used to assess temporal repeatability.
Results: The results confirmed the validity and reliability of the Persian version of MSSQ questionnaire. The results of face and content validity confirmed all of the questionnaire items. The Exploratory factor analysis yielded six factors which explained 75.99% of the variance observed. Also, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was 0.92 and intra-class correlation coefficients of the sub-scales were at acceptable level, ranging from 0.81 to 0.90.
Conclusion: This questionnaire is a useful and valid instrument in terms of implementation and ease of scoring, and can assess the stressors in medical students. Therefore, it can be used as a reliable instrument in research.

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Letter to Editor

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Introduction: Empowerment has been mostly considered a human resource strategy in recent decades, endeavoring to promote the effectiveness, productivity, and satisfaction of managers. Given the pivotal role of higher education authorities in adopting the rapid transformations in the global landscape, updating their knowledge and skills seems to be indispensable. This study endeavors to develop a professional empowerment model, specifically customized to needs of higher education authorities.

Methods: The present research is applied in terms of its purpose and qualitative grounded theory in terms of its implementation method. It was conducted using Strauss and Corbin's approach. A purposeful sampling method was adopted, and 10 educational directors from universities of medical sciences and Islamic Azad universities were selected as a sample from the population through the snowball technique based on the principle of theoretical saturation. To determine the validity and reliability of the data, the review of the participants and the review of non-participating experts were used.

Results: The findings during the three stages of open, central and selective coding indicate 12 main categories and 50 sub-categories, which in this study in the framework of the paradigm model are as follows: causal factors (organizational and individual factors), the central phenomenon, background factors (insightful leadership, talent management and organizational performance management), intervening factors (organizational and individual limitations, and managerial factors), strategies (educational transformation and empowerment of managers) and consequences (excellence and self-management).

Conclusion: The formulation of a professional empowerment framework for higher education managers across various organizational levels holds immense potential to significantly contribute to the advancement and development of higher education managers nationwide. By embracing this framework, higher education institutions and higher education managers can effectively navigate the complexities of the modern educational landscape and achieve their educational and research goals with greater efficiency and resource optimization.
 

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Introduction: The quality of the public health clerkship program determines the level of skill acquisition. Quality clerkship program, according to the changing needs of society in the field of health, as well as complying with educational standards, requires academic and continuous approaches. This study endeavored to design, implement, and evaluate the public health clerkship quality improvement program in Khoy University of Medical Sciences.

Methods: This qualitative study was conducted through action research approach in the 2021-2023 academic years. Simmons' six step model for action research was used including diagnosis of problem, information gathering, planning, action/implementation, evaluation, and feedback. Individual and group interviews and focus-group discussion sessions were used for data collection. Content analysis method employed for the data analysis.

Results: Based on the views of stakeholders in the study, 14 problems related to clerkship course were identified and interventions were designed and implemented. Clerkship program, clarifying the blueprint of the clerkship evaluation, better coordination and proper cooperation of the educational fields were the experiences of different stakeholders. Lack of educational facilities in the health centres was a challenge which needs more attention that was not resolved.

Conclusion: The results revealed that using a systematic method for promoting clerkship program quality would be effective. Besides, adopting a participatory approach in curriculum planning and students evaluation using different stakeholders viewpoint and taking advantage of their participation brings better results in promoting the quality of higher education. Considering the educational standards of health centres can lead to the improvement of the quality of field education not only in the field of public health, but also in other fields.

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Introduction: Given the dynamic and complex nature of universities, the success of higher education institutions in professional development hinges on the quality and appropriateness of their planning, development, as well as the implementation of programs that align with the institution's internal and external contexts. The systems dynamics approach, owing to its flexibility and compatibility with the higher education system, can serve as a valuable tool for optimizing the higher education system. This study endeavors to present a model for professional development of administrators using the systems dynamics approach in higher education.

Methods: This bi-phasic qualitative study is applied in terms of objective and mixed-methods in terms of execution. In the first phase, grounded theory with the Strauss and Corbin approach was employed. In the second phase, given the holistic nature of the study and the emphasis on the interaction between system components, the systems dynamics method was employed, following Sterman's five-stage model. The context of study was medical universities and health services, as well as Islamic Azad Universities. Factors influencing the professional development of higher education administrators were explored through semi-structured interviews with 10 educational administrators. The causal relationships between these factors were determined in five group modeling sessions with stakeholders and experts. Content validity and expert review were used to confirm the reliability and validity of the data.

Results: The simulation results identified 16 causal categories and 31 consequential categories, with some categories serving dual roles. Utilizing the VENSIM software, a professional empowerment model for higher education managers was developed, considering the sequential impact of these categories.

Conclusion: Professional empowerment of higher education managers hinges on the cultivation of managerial, leadership, and individual skills. The skills ushered in fostering creativity and innovation, establishing a motivating environment, embracing meritocracy, enhancing communication, addressing emerging challenges, aligning job roles with individual capabilities, operating under an independent and guiding organizational structure, promoting collective thinking, and securing adequate financial resources.