March 3, 2026Open Access

Charged Topics in Medical Education: Students’ Perspectives on Power, Voices, and Faculty Engagement

Key Points

Students highlight how power hierarchies constrain student engagement in discussions, especially for marginalized students, emphasizing the need for change.
A significant finding indicates that students feel a disproportionate burden when educators avoid charged topics, affecting their participation.
Students express a desire for faculty who guide discussions with expertise and evidence, viewing neutrality as a stance in itself.
The study underscores a need for targeted faculty development to improve engagement and address underlying dynamics in conversations.

Abstract

Power hierarchies constrain student engagement in charged discussions, with marginalized students bearing a disproportionate burden when educators avoid these topics. Despite these constraints, students assert agency through personal experience to center patient perspectives. Students seek educators who actively guide discussions using expertise and evidence, viewing neutrality as itself a stance. The findings underscore the need for faculty development addressing these dynamics.

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Discussion

Authors

Maram Alkhatib

Shazia Samanani

Megan Murphy

Journals

Perspectives on Medical Education

Actions

Institutions

Wake Forest University

George Washington University

Washington University Medical Center

References and Citations

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Charged Topics in Medical Education: Students’ Perspectives on Power, Voices, and Faculty Engagement

Key Points

Abstract

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Connected Papers

Discussion

Authors

Journals

Actions

Institutions

References and Citations

Citation Network

Connected Papers

Discussion

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