Critical Interpretive Synthesis of the Concept of Value in Medical Education

Introduction: Educational programs and curriculums are developed using underlying concepts of value. The development of values-based curriculum and access to education based on values requires clarification of the concept of value. This article is an interpretive review of the large body of diverse and complex literature on the concept of value in medical education.

Methods: This project used critical interpretive synthesis (CIS) to carry out qualitative analysis and synthesis of the literature in critical interpretive style. The main review question was the clarification of the concept of value in medical education, which produced over related 800 articles; 70 articles related to the research objective were studied by purposive sampling. After identifying the main categories and sub-categories, a well-reasoned synthesis of the contradictory findings in different studies was conducted. New concepts and relationships between concepts were created using CIS of documentation related to the concept of value and the philosophy and place of values in medical education.

Results: To perceive the concept of value and its use in the design and development of medical curriculum, a loop of concepts related to the concept of value was created. A more useful means of understanding value is offered by the synthetic constructs of principle-, outcome-, and virtue-oriented values. This triad of value loops shelters institutional, programming, and curricular levels of the education system.

Conclusion: This new theoretical conceptualization of value in the education system can be an appropriate guide for value-based educational programs and curricula in medical education in every context.