• D T Stern, M Linzer, P S O'Sullivan, and L Weld.
• Department of Medicine, New England Medical Center (NEMC), Boston, MA.
• Acad Med. 1995 Feb 1; 70 (2): 152-4.

BackgroundMeasuring critical-appraisal skills is a key step in assessing physicians' abilities to engage in self-directed learning. The authors developed an instrument to evaluate the abilities of residents to critically appraise a journal article.MethodIn 1991, 62 residents in the categorical internal medicine program at the New England Medical Center were asked to respond to a questionnaire, evaluate a sample article, and complete a self-assessment of competence in evaluation of research. Critical-appraisal skill was determined by calculating the resident's deviations from a "gold standard" critique developed through a modified Delphi technique, using a panel of five physicians. Spearman correlation coefficients were used to compare the residents' actual and self-perceived abilities.ResultsTwenty-eight residents returned the questionnaire, for a response rate of 45%. The composite score for the residents' objective assessments was 63% of the gold standard, and was not significantly correlated with post-graduate year, prior journal club experience, or self-assessed critical-appraisal skill.ConclusionAfter further validation in other settings, the assessment instrument in this study may be used to objectively assess critical-reading skills. It may also provide feedback and measure outcomes for interventions designed to improve critical reading.

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