The value of qualitative inquiry in medical education research: evaluation of three successful publications

Excerpt

"Qualitative inquiry cultivates the most useful of all human capacities: The capacity to learn."

– Halcolm's Laws of Inquiry [1]

Medical education research is an important and rapidly emerging field that draws from many disciplines (sociology, education, psychology, general medicine) with the objective to explain how people learn and how we should teach. There is a relative paucity of radiology-related education research, and it is given little focus in leading radiology journals. Of the six leading imaging journals, only RadioGraphics has created a dedicated “education corner” for education topics [2]. Over the years, quantitative research has been the preferred approach in radiology, describing the what, and analyzing its numerical correlations, but often falling short in the context of education. Conversely, qualitative research explores the how and why [3]; it helps us gain a deeper understanding of teaching, learning and the complexity of social phenomena during medical training [4]. …