title: Barriers to feedback in undergraduate medical education. Male students' perspective in Central Saudi Arabia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore the views of undergraduate medical students regarding the presence and sources of barriers to effective feedback in their setting.
  
  
  METHODS
  This cross-sectional study was conducted at the College of Medicine, Department of Medical Education, King Saud bin Abdul-Aziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi  Arabia from April to June 2010. A self-administered questionnaire was used to explore the objectives of the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred and eighty-six male undergraduate medical students participated in this study. Approximately 45% indicated presence of barriers to effective feedback. These include: absence of a clear system of feedback; inadequate skills of teachers for provision-effective feedback; and to a lesser extent, students' fear of insult due to feedback. Most participants showed their interest and readiness to receive more professional feedback in the future.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study has showed the presence of barriers as perceived by medical students, which could significantly minimize utilization of feedback in medical education. The reported barriers should be addressed to utilize the vital role of feedback in the learning process of undergraduate medical students.
authors.affiliation: Family Medicine Department, College of Medicine, King Saud Bin Abdul-Aziz University for Health Sciences, PO Box 69416, Riyadh 11547, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.haqwia@ksau-hs.edu.sa
authors.forename: Ali I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Al-Haqwi
authors.forename: Abdullah M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Al-Wahbi
authors.forename: Hamza M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Abdulghani
authors.forename: Henk T
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: van der Molen
mesh_terms: D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003144:Communication Barriers; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003479:Curriculum; D003906:Developing Countries; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005246:Feedback; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010865:Pilot Projects; D018794:Problem-Based Learning / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D012529:Saudi Arabia; D012577:Schools, Medical / Q000592:standards / Q000639:trends; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult