The medical school learning environment can be an emotionally and academically demanding environment that impacts the student experience. These experiences may cause distress that can lead to overall mental health concerns. Research suggests that underrepresented minority medical students are more vulnerable than their non-minority counterparts when experiencing the medical school learning environment and are more likely to be at risk of delayed graduation or withdrawal. Students that have adverse experiences related to race are more likely to have high emotional exhaustion and screen positive for depression, which can be troublesome for medical schools that are hoping to increase their enrollment and graduation rate of underrepresented minority students. The purpose of this study was to understand how the medical school learning environment impacts the experience of underrepresented minority medical students, particularly their mental health and their knowledge and use of support services. A case study method was used to gather information from 10 underrepresented minority students along with a descriptive analysis of the Association of American Medical Colleges Year-Two Questionnaire. The findings of this study indicate that underrepresented minority students do experience medical school differently and have a less positive perception of the learning environment than their non-minority peers. Factors such as prior experiences, knowledge gaps, cultural experiences, access to resources and support systems along with differences in lived experiences create disparities in experiences for underrepresented minority medical students. These factors often lead to social isolation and stereotype threats that impact students’ mental health and help-seeking behaviors which impacts there academic success. This study seeks to encourage medical school administrators and educators to adjust current practices and gain new knowledge and practices to develop a learning environment with educational programs and support systems that promote a culture of openness, cultural awareness, and a culturally competent administration that retains and graduates confident and competent underrepresented minority students. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education. / Spring Semester 2018. / March 7, 2018. / Medical student help-seeking behaviors, Medical Student Well-being, Minority Medical Student / Includes bibliographical references. / Toby Park, Professor Directing Dissertation; Elizabeth Jakubowski, University Representative; Patrice Iatarola, Committee Member; Linda Schrader, Committee Member; Robert Schwartz, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_653420 |
| Contributors | Gadson, Leekemase (author), Park, Toby J. (professor directing dissertation), Jakubowski, Elizabeth M. (university representative), Iatarola, Patrice (committee member), Schrader, Linda B. (committee member), Schwartz, Robert A. (committee member), Florida State University (degree granting institution), College of Education (degree granting college), Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Studies (degree granting departmentdgg) |
| Publisher | Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text, doctoral thesis |
| Format | 1 online resource (117 pages), computer, application/pdf |
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