Career orientations and the quality of working life among medical interns and residents

The present study explores the relationship between career orientations and assessments of the personal and work environments of a sample of medical interns and residents. Physicians whose career expectations were more “patient-oriented” were found to evaluate their work and social environments differently than physicians who were less patient-oriented. Similar but opposite patterns of associations were found among physicians whose career expectations were more “disease-oriented”. The findings demonstrate the need to take into account how physicians assess their personal and work environments during post-graduate training in order to understand more adequately the process and outcomes of career choice.