272 - Shaping Who We Are as Educators: Pediatric Physicians’ Perspectives on Role, Identity, and Social Context

Publication Number: 1258.272

Morgan Congdon, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Lara Varpio, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, United States; Piet Leroy, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands; Dorene F. Balmer, University of Pennsylvania, CHOP, Philadelphia, PA, United States

Background: Medical education is evolving rapidly, as are the roles of medical educators. These roles have expanded in number and complexity, creating tension for some who feel unprepared or uncertain how to balance competing expectations. This evolution challenges the development of educator identity and, in turn, motivation for professional growth and sustained engagement in educational careers.

Objective: To explore how pediatric physicians perceive their roles in medical education (what they do) in relation to their professional identity (who they are) and social context.

Design/Methods: Using a constructionist approach informed by Identity Theory and Symbolic Interactionism, we conducted semi-structured interviews with a national sample of pediatric physicians recruited via key informant and snowball sampling. Interviews explored how physicians describe their roles in medical education and how those roles align or conflict with their identity within academic social contexts. Data were analyzed iteratively using Reflexive Thematic Analysis.

Results: Sixteen pediatric physicians representing 7 subspecialties and 11 institutions participated. Six thematic domains were identified: (1) Time and tradeoffs: Main roles consumed most energy, sometimes at the expense of passions like teaching or scholarship; (2) Formal roles with informal meaning: Titled positions offered influence, yet informal mentorship and learner relationships brought fulfillment and identity; (3) Identity formation and validation: Definitions of “medical educator” varied widely revealing how educators constructed and negotiated identity in relation to their work.; (4) Agency and growth: Many felt unprepared for assigned roles but were proactive in using the opportunities intentionally for personal development; (5) Community: External professional networks provided affirmation and re-energized identity; and (6) Tensions and alignment: Educators balanced satisfaction with tensions inherent in meeting expectations that not everyone can—or should—do everything.

Conclusion(s): Roles, identity, and context are inextricably intertwined: while roles structure daily work, not all who hold educator roles identify as medical educators. This divergence reflects individual meaning-making and contextual pressures that privilege formal, titled roles. Future work will continue longitudinal interviews to examine perceptions of titled versus informal roles and how educators exercise agency in both pursuing and shaping roles over time. Findings may inform professional development strategies that foster role alignment and sustain careers in medical education.

Table 1.
Congdon PAS Table 1.pdfParticipant Demographics (n=16) and Institutional Contexts

Table 2.
Congdon PAS Table 2.pdfThemes and Representative Participant Reflections

Figure 1.
Congdon PAS Figure 1.pdfIntersection of medical educator roles and identity within social context. Identity is formed through engagement with roles, mediated by individual agency, all situated within context. Contextual factors shape both role assignment and identity development, influencing the degree of overlap between the two.