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Do male chairs of surgery have implicit gender bias in the residency application process?

The American journal of surgery, 2021-04, Vol.221 (4), p.697-700 [Peer Reviewed Journal]

2020 ;Published by Elsevier Inc. ;COPYRIGHT 2021 Elsevier B.V. ;Copyright Elsevier Limited Apr 2021 ;ISSN: 0002-9610 ;EISSN: 1879-1883 ;DOI: 10.1016/j.amjsurg.2020.08.010 ;PMID: 32843230

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  • Title:
    Do male chairs of surgery have implicit gender bias in the residency application process?
  • Author: Dream, Sophie ; Olivet, Meagan Mandabach ; Tanner, Lauren ; Chen, Herbert
  • Subjects: Adult ; Asian students ; Bias ; Discrimination ; Females ; Gender ; Gender bias ; General surgery ; General Surgery - education ; Human bias ; Humans ; Implicit bias ; Internship and Residency ; Interviews ; Letter of recommendation ; Male ; Males ; Medical colleges ; Medical students ; Personality ; Personnel Selection ; Race ; Racial bias ; Racism ; Residency ; Retrospective Studies ; School Admission Criteria ; Sex discrimination ; Sexism ; Skills ; Statistical analysis ; Students ; Surgery ; Writers
  • Is Part Of: The American journal of surgery, 2021-04, Vol.221 (4), p.697-700
  • Description: Medical students applying for general surgery residencies often require a letter of recommendation (LOR) from the Surgical Chair. However, LORs may reveal gender and ethnic bias. This study examines the presence of implicit bias in general surgery resident selection by evaluating chair LORs. A retrospective study of 149 LORs for categorical general surgery residents, at an academic institution, written by surgery chairs from 1980 to 2013 was performed. Two independent reviewers scored each letter for overall quality, mention of personality, academic deficiencies, technical skills, and standout adjectives. Scores were compared across gender and race and statistical analysis performed using SPSS. Males comprised 85% of the applicants; racial makeup was Caucasian (90%), black (4%), Asian (4%), and Hispanic (2%). Male chairs wrote all letters. Letters for female students received higher overall scores than males (4.13 ± 0.16, 3.59 ± 0.08, p = 0.005). Discussion of personality was significantly less for Asian students (1.28 ± 0.08, 1.83 ± 0.48, 0.5 ± 0.224, 1.67 ± 0.67, p 0.050). No difference was present in mention of academic deficiencies, technical skills, or standout adjectives. Female medical students invited to interview at a top academic general surgery residency had higher quality LORs than their male counterparts. Asian applicants had statistically significant less discussion of personality. Further examination of residency selection processes is necessary to implement changes that mitigate implicit bias in trainee selection. •Female students invited to interview at a top academic surgery residency had higher quality letters of recommendation.•Asian medical students had an increased use of stand-out adjectives, but significantly less discussion of personality.•Changes to the residency application processes are needed to mitigate implicit bias in trainee selection.
  • Publisher: United States: Elsevier Inc
  • Language: English
  • Identifier: ISSN: 0002-9610
    EISSN: 1879-1883
    DOI: 10.1016/j.amjsurg.2020.08.010
    PMID: 32843230
  • Source: MEDLINE
    ProQuest Central
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