Shifts in attitudes among psychiatric residents: serial measures over 10 years

Psychiatric residents completing their training in 1976, 1978, 1980, and 1986 were sent surveys on their attitudes toward treatment and training among a "dynamic-organic continuum." Their responses indicated decreasing antagonism toward the medical model and increasing endorsement of medical education, experience in neurology, and the internship as essential aspects of psychiatric education. The rankings of various treatment modalities for each of four disorders were remarkably stable across surveys. Except for megavitamin therapy, residents in 1986 were at least somewhat more likely to consider essential each of six therapies for each of the four disorders, indicating a general increase in therapeutic optimism.