title: Development and evaluation of a new occupational medicine teaching module to advance self-efficacy and knowledge among medical students.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Self-efficacy is defined as a person's beliefs in his or her abilities to successfully complete a task, and has been shown to influence student motivation and academic achievement. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a new European teaching module in occupational medicine on undergraduate students' self-efficacy and knowledge in the subject matter.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pre-, in-between, and posttraining tests were used to assess self-efficacy and knowledge building of 261 third-year medical students on occupational health issues. Determinants of self-efficacy and knowledge were also identified. Repeated measurement data were analyzed with multilevel statistical procedures.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The level of self-efficacy and knowledge in occupational medicine increased after the training. Students who frequently attended the lectures scored significantly higher than sporadic attendees. There was no relation between the level of self-efficacy and the final knowledge score.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Teaching with the new occupational medicine module was effective. Lecture attendance is an important determinant of self-efficacy and performance. Self-efficacy was not associated with knowledge score. Encouraging classroom participation may enhance student achievement.
authors.affiliation: From the Department of Public Health (Drs Braeckman and Janssens, and Mr De Clercq), Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Occupational Medicine (Dr Gehanno), Rouen University Hospital, Rouen, France; Faculty of Medicine (Dr Bulat), University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia; University of Medicine and Pharmacy Victor Babes (Dr Pauncu), Timisoara, Romania; Academic Medical Center (Drs Smits and van Dijk), Coronel Institute of Occupational Health, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; and Department of Educational Sciences (Drs Vanderlinde and Valcke), Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Lutgart
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Braeckman
authors.forename: Bart
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: De Clercq
authors.forename: Heidi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Janssens
authors.forename: Jean-François
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Gehanno
authors.forename: Petar
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bulat
authors.forename: Elena-Ana
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Pauncu
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Smits
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: van Dijk
authors.forename: Ruben
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vanderlinde
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Valcke
mesh_terms: D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000379:methods*; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016272:Occupational Health / Q000193:education; D009787:Occupational Medicine / Q000193:education*; D015397:Program Evaluation; D020377:Self Efficacy; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*