title: Measuring physician mental workload: reliability and validity assessment of a brief instrument.
abstract: This study examined the reliability and validity of a brief six-item instrument to measure the mental workload experienced by residents for specific patient visits to an ambulatory care clinic. Participating in the study were twenty-two residents in postgraduate years 1 through 3 who were working in the general outpatient clinic of an inner city, private, nonprofit community hospital. Cronbach's alpha coefficient for the instrument was 0.80. Findings supported several theory-based hypotheses on determinants and performance consequences of mental workload. Mental workload was positively correlated with fatigue (r = 0.42, P = 0.03) and inversely correlated with residents' self-rated experience with patients' problems (r = -0.65, P less than 0.001). Residents' performance was measured through self-ratings and faculty physicians' ratings. Mental workload was inversely correlated with self-rated performance (r = -0.67, P less than 0.001). The correlation of mental workload with faculty physician ratings that reflected the technical dimension of patient care (physician examination, medications, and procedures) was r = -0.38 (P = 0.04). With mental workload squared, the correlation was r = -0.45 (P = 0.02) and the form of the relationship, consistent with the hypothesis, was a slightly downward sloping curve. Limitations of this research are discussed as well as suggestions for further research.
authors.affiliation: Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, State University of New York, Buffalo.
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Bertram
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Opila
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Gallagher
authors.forename: R W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Schifeling
authors.forename: I S
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Snow
authors.forename: C O
authors.initials: CO
authors.lastname: Hershey
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006764:Hospitals, Community / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008606:Mental Processes; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012647:Self-Assessment; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology; D014940:Work Schedule Tolerance; D000078329:Workforce; D016526:Workload / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*