A hypothetical model of the effect of medical education on specialty choice.

Abstract

Using the Theory of Reasoned Action, we propose a model that diagrams medical school characteristics known or hypothesized to influence the process of specialty choice. The medical school characteristics we consider are administrative support, special programs, primary care funding, number and quality of primary care faculty, faculty influence, primary care residencies, committee representation, primary care environment, required time, and student contact. This model provides explicit hypotheses to be tested in future research on specialty choice.