Korean medical students' cognitive, emotional, and social characteristics.

PURPOSE Medical schools and graduate medical schools should understand the personality and psychological qualities of graduate medical students, medical students, and premedical students and link them with the curriculum. METHODS In this study, through June 2010 we analyzed medical papers that were published in Korea. The search terms were psychological terminology, including emotion, cognition, intelligence, social ability, stress, motivation, judgment, and learning style. RESULTS In the cognitive and learning aspects, preliminary doctors were under the influence of prior knowledge; cumulative learning; self-efficacy; and visual, logical, non-self-led learning types and had external learning motivation. In the emotional adaptive aspects, they appeared to be the ISTJ (introversion, sensing, thinking, judging) personality type with regard to the Myers-Briggs indicators and perfectionists, suffering from severe academic stress. Their motivation on matriculation was associated with their interests and aptitudes, and through community service, they adapted to the learning and living environment of medicine. In the social and moral aspects, they did not have high moral judgment, felt devaluated about their job than before, and tended to have an open and flexible doctor-patient relationship. CONCLUSION Medical graduate students, medical students, and premedical students have greater likelihood to cultivate their character and capacity for adaptation.