Table 3. Comparison between junior and senior residents with respect to mean scores of questions within the R-SPQ-2F questionnaire
R-SPQ-2F questionnaire Junior Senior p-value
Question Mean +/- SD Mean +/- SD
1. I find that at times studying gives me a feeling of deep personal satisfaction. 3.2 ± 0.9 3.4 ± 1.1 0.571
2. I find that I have to do enough work on a topic so that I can form my own conclusions before I am satisfied.* 2.7 ± 1.2 3.3 ± 1.1 0.078
3. My aim is to pass the course while doing as little work as possible. 1.45 ± 0.7 1.7 ± 1.1 0.365
4. I only study seriously what’s given out in class or in the course outlines. 1.9 ± 0.8 1.8 ± 1.0 0.89
5. I feel that virtually any topic can be highly interesting once I get into it. 2.9 ± 1.1 3.7 ± 1.2 0.041
6. I find most new topics interesting and often spend extra time trying to obtain more information about them. 3.3 ± 0.9 3.2 ± 1.3 0.856
7. I do not find my course very interesting, so I keep my work to the minimum. 1.8 ± 0.9 1.4 ± 0.7 0.146
8. I learn some things by rote, going over and over them until I know them by heart even if I do not understand them. 2.4 ± 1.1 2.3 ± 1.0 0.845
9. I find that studying academic topics can at times be as exciting as a good novel or movie. 2.9 ± 1.1 2.4 ± 0.9 0.144
10. I test myself on important topics until I understand them completely. 3.4 ± 0.8 3.0 ± 1.0 0.132
11. I find I can get by in most assessments by memorizing key sections rather than trying to understand them. 1.9 ± 0.9 2 ± 0.8 0.709
12. I generally restrict my study to what is specifically set as I think it is unnecessary to do anything extra. 1.8 ± 1.0 1.7 ± 0.9 0.659
13. I work hard at my studies because I find the material interesting. 3.3 ± 1.1 3.5 ± 1.1 0.511
14. I spend a lot of my free time finding out more about interesting topics which have been discussed in different classes. 2.8 ± 1.0 2.9 ± 1.1 0.642
15. I find it is not helpful to study topics in depth. It confuses and wastes time, when all you need is a passing acquaintance with topics. 1.7 ± 1.0 1.7 ± 0.9 0.911
16. I believe that lecturers shouldn’t expect students to spend significant amounts of time studying material everyone knows won’t be examined. 2.3 ± 1.3 2.1 ± 0.9 0.656
17. I come to most classes with questions in mind that I want answering. 2.6 ± 0.8 2.4 ± 1.0 0.68
18. I make a point of looking at most of the suggested readings that go with the lectures. 2.8 ± 1.0 2.5 ± 1.0 0.484
19. I see no point in learning material which is not likely to be in the examination. 2 ± 1.1 2.1 ± 1.4 0.902
20. I find the best way to pass examinations is to try to remember answers to likely questions. 2.2 ± 0.9 2.1 ± 1.0 0.85

*Question 2 was removed from statistical analysis to obtain a Cronbach alpha>0.60. R-SPQ-2F, Revised Study Process Questionnaire of Two Factors.

Int J Med Educ. 2019; 10:62-67; doi: 10.5116/ijme.5c88.029d