Student attitudes to peer physical examination: A qualitative study of changes in expressed willingness to participate

Research intention: Since a Grounded Theory paradigm was employed, there was no formal research hypothesis: the research intention was to explore factors which might underlie changes in student willingness to undertake PPE following familiarity with the process. Methods: Students who had completed an Examining Fellow Students Questionnaire at the beginning and end of the academic year, and who had indicated a change in willingness to participate, were invited to attend focus groups. Four focus groups were convened and transcripts were analysed for common themes. Results: Surprisingly, students downplayed the significance of changes. Also unexpectedly, dichotomous views emerged on familiarity, with some students preferring friends for examination and others preferring strangers. Staff embarrassment also emerged as a factor inhibiting student participation. Conclusions: The significance of reported changes in attitudes to PPE may have been exaggerated. Proposals for increasing the willingness of students to participate in PPE are developed from the emergent themes.