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| Most Cavaliers aren't elite performers, but they can surprise you. |
We’ve been doing some
research on perfectionism and failure in veterinary students, and came across a
fantastic paper entitled “Veterinary Students as Elite Performers” which
provides insight into why the vet degree is so challenging.
But first this concept of
veterinarians as elite performers. I tend to associate the word “elite” with
the concept of an elite athlete. While there are many sporty vets around some
of us (ahem) aren’t so gifted. Do you need to be a marathon runner or pole
vaulter to be a good vet? [It would give you impressive stamina].
No. (Phew). What the
authors mean is this:
“Elite performers are judged by proficiency standards, face performance consequences that may include loss of life for client or self, must have excellent coping skills for unanticipated situations, and are expected to engage their talents and competencies at specific moments regardless of external distractions or competing demands.”
You know. Emergency room
doctors, surgeons, the bomb squad etc.
There is significant competition
for places in veterinary schools, allowing these schools to select the best
performers. You would think, then, that veterinary degree programs would be a
hotbed of excellence and produce only elite performers. But it doesn’t follow.
As the authors state, “by
their very nature…these same programs may be ill-suited to promote high levels
of performance among these elite achievers, particularly in areas where
performance is dependent on non-technical competency and personal growth.”
Human nature gets in the
way. High-achieving students are, according to the literature, strongly
motivated to a) maintain an appearance of POSITIVE social comparison (ie doing
well compared to their peers) and b) avoid any chance of NEGATIVE social
comparison (ie doing worse than their peers).
But what happens when you
immerse high achievers with their academic equals? Some will have to do better
or worse. Much energy is spent comparing oneself – look, she knows so much
more/puts in more hours/got a high distinction. Evening questioning oneself “I
am not as smart as them – should I even be here? I feel like an imposter!”
Having been through vet
school, I can tell you that these thoughts can be overwhelming at times. The
result is that one can adopt an “external locus of control”, ie worrying about
how others are performing and how one self is performing in comparison, rather than worrying about what one can control (one’s
own performance in its own right). Of course all this additional worry is
detrimental to one’s own performance – so the “OMG they are so much smarter
than me” effect is a somewhat self-fulfilling prophecy. Again, speaking from
experience, it can be a powerful force.
The authors looked at
characteristics of vet students and found that in general there is a high level
of anxiety in vet students, that they were inadequately equipped to deal with
adversity, they placed a high value on positive social comparison (which is one
reason for getting quite emotive about grades), their fear of failure resulted
in passive behaviour in professional settings, they were prone to depression
and procrastination, and – despite all this – self confidence levels were quite
high.
As a teacher I am painfully familiar with the reluctance of veterinary students in particular to
participate in class discussions, concerns about group work and helping peers
succeed and resentment of peer success (documented in the study). But until I
read this I never really understood why.
There’s no easy fix. The
authors recommend providing very well defined learning goals and expectations
to “allay the sharp fear of failure”, creating learning environments that
create group achievement and creating opportunities for personal growth and
development. Surely also recognising this tendency to compare ourselves is an
important step.
If you’re interesting in
reading more about elite performance, check out our review of Mathew Syed’s
book here:
Reference
Zenner D, Burns GA, Ruby
KL, DeBowes RM & Stoll SK (2005) Veterinary students as elite performers:
preliminary insights. Journal of
Veterinary Medical Education 32(2):242-248.
