title: Visual-spatial ability is more important than motivation for novices in surgical simulator training: a preliminary study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether surgical simulation performance and previous video gaming experience would correlate with higher motivation to further train a specific simulator task and whether visual-spatial ability would rank higher in importance to surgical performance than the above. It was also examined whether or not motivation would correlate with a preference to choose a surgical specialty in the future and if simulator training would increase the interest in choosing that same work field.
  
  
  METHODS
  Motivation and general interest in surgery was measured pre- and post-training in 30 medical students at Karolinska Institutet who were tested in a laparoscopic surgical simulator in parallel with measurement of visual-spatial ability and self-estimated video gaming experience. Correlations between simulator performance metrics, visual-spatial ability and motivation were statistically analyzed using regression analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A good result in the first simulator trial correlated with higher self-determination index (r =-0.46, p=0.05) in male students. Visual-spatial ability was the most important underlying factor followed by intrinsic motivation score and finally video gaming experience (p=0.02, p=0.05, p=0.11) regarding simulator performance in male students. Simulator training increased interest in surgery when studying all subjects (p=0.01), male subjects (p=0.02) as well as subjects with low video gaming experience (p=0.02).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This preliminary study highlights individual differences regarding the effect of simulator training on motivation that can be taken into account when designing simulator training curricula, although the sample size is quite small and findings should be interpreted carefully.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology (CLINTEC), Division of Orthopedics and Biotechnology Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Marcus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schlickum
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: Leif
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hedman
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology (CLINTEC), Division of Orthopedics and Biotechnology Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Felländer-Tsai
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction; D003479:Curriculum; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010535:Laparoscopy / Q000193:education; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012737:Sex Factors; D000066908:Simulation Training / Q000379:methods*; D013028:Space Perception; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*; D018910:Video Games; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: motivation; surgical simulator; surgical training; video games; visual-spatial ability