ABSTRACT

A recent study evaluating utilization of computer-aided instruction revealed a wide disparity among individual medical student use of computer resources.  We tested the hypothesis that the frequency and length of medical student logins to the school’s computer network correlated with their personality preferences.  Personality preferences of students (n=236) were obtained using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) test.  Computer utilization was quantified from network logs that recorded frequency and length of logins to the network.  Individual login data were sorted by personality preference and statistically analyzed.  Students with personality preferences that included Introversion (vs. Extroversion), iNtuition (vs. Sensing), Thinking (vs. Feeling) and Perceiving (vs. Judging) tended to use computers the most.  Groupings of preferences revealed that “ITP” types logged in significantly more often than “EFJ” types regardless of the N/S dimension.  “NTP” types logged in for significantly longer time than the “SFJ” regardless of the E/I dimension.  These results suggest that using computers is not a natural inclination for many students, which may account for the wide disparity in student use of computer-aided learning.