{"id":{"repo_id":"uic","oai_identifier":"oai:figshare.com:article/32993894"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uic/oai:figshare.com:article/32993894","repository":{"repo_id":"uic","name":"University of Illinois - Chicago","base_url":"https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai"},"display":{"title":"An Ethnographic Analysis of Teaching Responses to Error in Surgical Simulation","abstract":"Background: To embed surgical simulation into residency training, faculty surgeons are often recruited as instructors due to their expertise on the subject matter, rather than their training as educators. Faculty surgeons experience with teaching procedural skills comes from one-on-one teaching in the operating room, which is an inherently different learning environment than simulation. Little is known about what teaching behaviors surgical faculty employ during surgical simulation or the effectiveness of such behaviors. Additionally, while previous work has demonstrated noticeable gender bias within academic surgery few studies have explored gendered differences in communication between faculty and trainees during surgical training. Therefore, the primary aim was to characterize interactions between surgical faculty instructors and surgical trainees during surgical simulation sessions. The secondary aim was to investigate the impact of gender-based differences in surgical learners’ communication patterns on surgical educators’ communication and teaching style during simulated surgical skills training. Methods: We conducted an ethnographic qualitative study was conducted using observations of a small group simulated surgical learning environment. Twenty-three surgical trainees and six surgical faculty instructors consented to have their learning environment recorded during 2.5-hour long surgical simulation sessions in the 2021-2022 academic year, during which learners practiced technical skills in small groups on simulated models. Fieldnotes were created by watching recordings of the learning environment. Iterative open coding was performed of these fieldnotes, using memos to integrate codes into themes and themes into an overarching theory. Results: Active teaching of surgical skills most commonly occurred in response to learner mistakes. Teacher responses to such mistakes varied in effectiveness. We additionally noted that trainees often used humor either as a method of being noticed to receive additional instruction or to cope with an error, and that feminine communication styles, such as deference to others, lack of confidence, and a focus on communal outcomes rather than their personal needs, served as barriers to learning in a simulated setting. Conclusions: This work highlights a need for instructor faculty development focused on improving equity in learning opportunities within the simulated learning environment.","abstract_html":"Background: To embed surgical simulation into residency training, faculty surgeons are often recruited as instructors due to their expertise on the subject matter, rather than their training as educators. Faculty surgeons experience with teaching procedural skills comes from one-on-one teaching in the operating room, which is an inherently different learning environment than simulation. Little is known about what teaching behaviors surgical faculty employ during surgical simulation or the effectiveness of such behaviors. Additionally, while previous work has demonstrated noticeable gender bias within academic surgery few studies have explored gendered differences in communication between faculty and trainees during surgical training. Therefore, the primary aim was to characterize interactions between surgical faculty instructors and surgical trainees during surgical simulation sessions. The secondary aim was to investigate the impact of gender-based differences in surgical learners’ communication patterns on surgical educators’ communication and teaching style during simulated surgical skills training. Methods: We conducted an ethnographic qualitative study was conducted using observations of a small group simulated surgical learning environment. Twenty-three surgical trainees and six surgical faculty instructors consented to have their learning environment recorded during 2.5-hour long surgical simulation sessions in the 2021-2022 academic year, during which learners practiced technical skills in small groups on simulated models. Fieldnotes were created by watching recordings of the learning environment. Iterative open coding was performed of these fieldnotes, using memos to integrate codes into themes and themes into an overarching theory. Results: Active teaching of surgical skills most commonly occurred in response to learner mistakes. Teacher responses to such mistakes varied in effectiveness. We additionally noted that trainees often used humor either as a method of being noticed to receive additional instruction or to cope with an error, and that feminine communication styles, such as deference to others, lack of confidence, and a focus on communal outcomes rather than their personal needs, served as barriers to learning in a simulated setting. Conclusions: This work highlights a need for instructor faculty development focused on improving equity in learning opportunities within the simulated learning environment.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Sarah Lund (24399467)"],"institution":null,"degree_name":null,"degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2026,"date_issued":"2026-05-01T00:00:00Z","date_published":"2026-05-01T00:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-27T21:33:40Z","subjects":["Health Sciences","Medicine and Surgery"],"languages":[],"rights":["In Copyright"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://doi.org/10.25417/uic.32993894.v1","outbound_label":"DOI","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Sarah Lund (24399467)"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2026-05-01T00:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:relation","label":"Dc Relation","values":["https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/An_Ethnographic_Analysis_of_Teaching_Responses_to_Error_in_Surgical_Simulation/32993894"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Text","Thesis"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Health Sciences","Medicine and Surgery"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["In Copyright"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["10.25417/uic.32993894.v1"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Background: To embed surgical simulation into residency training, faculty surgeons are often recruited as instructors due to their expertise on the subject matter, rather than their training as educators. Faculty surgeons experience with teaching procedural skills comes from one-on-one teaching in the operating room, which is an inherently different learning environment than simulation. Little is known about what teaching behaviors surgical faculty employ during surgical simulation or the effectiveness of such behaviors. Additionally, while previous work has demonstrated noticeable gender bias within academic surgery few studies have explored gendered differences in communication between faculty and trainees during surgical training. Therefore, the primary aim was to characterize interactions between surgical faculty instructors and surgical trainees during surgical simulation sessions. The secondary aim was to investigate the impact of gender-based differences in surgical learners’ communication patterns on surgical educators’ communication and teaching style during simulated surgical skills training. Methods: We conducted an ethnographic qualitative study was conducted using observations of a small group simulated surgical learning environment. Twenty-three surgical trainees and six surgical faculty instructors consented to have their learning environment recorded during 2.5-hour long surgical simulation sessions in the 2021-2022 academic year, during which learners practiced technical skills in small groups on simulated models. Fieldnotes were created by watching recordings of the learning environment. Iterative open coding was performed of these fieldnotes, using memos to integrate codes into themes and themes into an overarching theory. Results: Active teaching of surgical skills most commonly occurred in response to learner mistakes. Teacher responses to such mistakes varied in effectiveness. We additionally noted that trainees often used humor either as a method of being noticed to receive additional instruction or to cope with an error, and that feminine communication styles, such as deference to others, lack of confidence, and a focus on communal outcomes rather than their personal needs, served as barriers to learning in a simulated setting. Conclusions: This work highlights a need for instructor faculty development focused on improving equity in learning opportunities within the simulated learning environment."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["An Ethnographic Analysis of Teaching Responses to Error in Surgical Simulation"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Sarah Lund (24399467)"],"dc:date":["2026-05-01T00:00:00Z"],"dc:description":["Background: To embed surgical simulation into residency training, faculty surgeons are often recruited as instructors due to their expertise on the subject matter, rather than their training as educators. Faculty surgeons experience with teaching procedural skills comes from one-on-one teaching in the operating room, which is an inherently different learning environment than simulation. Little is known about what teaching behaviors surgical faculty employ during surgical simulation or the effectiveness of such behaviors. Additionally, while previous work has demonstrated noticeable gender bias within academic surgery few studies have explored gendered differences in communication between faculty and trainees during surgical training. Therefore, the primary aim was to characterize interactions between surgical faculty instructors and surgical trainees during surgical simulation sessions. The secondary aim was to investigate the impact of gender-based differences in surgical learners’ communication patterns on surgical educators’ communication and teaching style during simulated surgical skills training. Methods: We conducted an ethnographic qualitative study was conducted using observations of a small group simulated surgical learning environment. Twenty-three surgical trainees and six surgical faculty instructors consented to have their learning environment recorded during 2.5-hour long surgical simulation sessions in the 2021-2022 academic year, during which learners practiced technical skills in small groups on simulated models. Fieldnotes were created by watching recordings of the learning environment. Iterative open coding was performed of these fieldnotes, using memos to integrate codes into themes and themes into an overarching theory. Results: Active teaching of surgical skills most commonly occurred in response to learner mistakes. Teacher responses to such mistakes varied in effectiveness. We additionally noted that trainees often used humor either as a method of being noticed to receive additional instruction or to cope with an error, and that feminine communication styles, such as deference to others, lack of confidence, and a focus on communal outcomes rather than their personal needs, served as barriers to learning in a simulated setting. Conclusions: This work highlights a need for instructor faculty development focused on improving equity in learning opportunities within the simulated learning environment."],"dc:identifier":["10.25417/uic.32993894.v1"],"dc:relation":["https://figshare.com/articles/thesis/An_Ethnographic_Analysis_of_Teaching_Responses_to_Error_in_Surgical_Simulation/32993894"],"dc:rights":["In Copyright"],"dc:subject":["Health Sciences","Medicine and Surgery"],"dc:title":["An Ethnographic Analysis of Teaching Responses to Error in Surgical Simulation"],"dc:type":["Text","Thesis"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-27T21:33:40Z"}