Abstract
This study employed a consumer research technique-conjoint analysis-to assess the relative importance of several factors in the selection of a specialty byfourth-year medical students. The study was undertaken in light of a decline in the number of medical students entering primary care residencies. One hundred four students responded to a questionnaire involving six factors: national need for physicians, personal interest, yearly income, hours worked per week, availability of loan repayment, and level of debt. Personal interest accountedfor 54% of total variation in preferences. Expected income was second in importance overall, but depended on its combination with otherfactors. Debt, hours worked, availability of loan repayment, and physician supply together accounted for 29% of total variation. Specialty selection by medical students is clearly a complex process, and conjoint analysis can be an important addition to the multiplicity of methods applied to its investigation.
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